Sustainable Cow

Irony

2010-10-13T11:03:00.000-07:00

Is it ironic that my last post was about bike safety and this post is written with one hand since the other is broken from a bike/car accident? Probably (although ever since Alanis' rendition, I've had trouble keeping the definition of ironic straight).

Last week while biking, a driver opened their door without looking and I crashed into it and veered left. Then, to add injury to injury, I crashed into the car in the traffic lane as well. At this point I came to a stop on the ground. It hurt, a lot. And when I looked at my right hand I knew I was in for it- my middle finger was clearly dislocated (and it turns out broken as well)!

So not that I necessarily needed an excuse, but you will all have to forgive me for not blogging very much this month. Rest assured though that when I get this cast off and the okay from doctors, I will be right back on my bike. Drivers, please be careful when opening your doors, it's the law!

And since the last post ended with a resounding support for a superiority complex, here is another example. A direct quote from Freecycle SF:

"My MIL was baking while visiting and I have 2 sticks of new packaged butter. It's says it's not treated with RBGH, but I only feed my kids organic. Please specify a time you are picking up. I will set it outside for you" (emphasis added).

Not complete without the customary, "Sent from my iPhone." Got to love SF.

Driving Habits

2010-09-21T09:33:00.000-07:00

Kiplinger, some sort of financial magaine, had an article today entitled "Generation Y Giving Cars a Pass." This was a surprising article for two reasons. (1) Apparently I am of Generation Y (and so are you if you are between 21-30). I didn't know that, but I am happy to oblige, because Y is a great letter. One that starts my last name, for instance. (2) More importantly, I didn't realize this was a trend. I mean sure, I noticed it amongst my friends, but many of them live in the city and were recently in college (although now, upon further reflection, I realize that was 5 years ago). It has always puzzled me that people would be willing to walk across campus in college (15 minutes), but upon graduating, will drive far shorter distances (e.g. from one end of a parking lot to another).

I'm glad to hear that my generation is taking responsibility for the future into their own hands. Although I suspect we are also known for our shallowness/callowness- always plugged into some machine, I think this is one of our most significant contributions to our community. When public transit can take twice plus as long, it takes some serious commitment (and planning!) to take it. And while I use my train time to slow down, reflect and look out the window, apparently Generation Y "views commuting a few hours by car a huge productivity waste when they can work using PDAs while taking the bus and train." I can't believe a 2010 article used the term PDA.

Personally, I choose to live without a car because I like my lifestyle. I like my super short work commute (2 miles, 15 minutes by bike). I like saving $10,000/year (AAA numbers on average cost of a car/year) so I can choose a job I love and eat good food. I like the increased health benefits (20 to 1), even taking into account the increased risk of death (depending on how you run the numbers, bikes have less deaths per trips but more deaths per mile). And finally, I like the efficiency of combining my wind-down, with exercise, with commute, with catching up to cars at the next light, with advanced brain activity (is that car going to turn, YES?? CRAP!) and with, last but not least, feeling superior to everybody else.

Why I Stay In The City- Community

2010-09-18T13:39:00.000-07:00

I constantly think this city is too cool for me. After all, most days all I want to do is stay at home and cook. But yesterday night, Pumpkin and I went for unplanned night on the town.

First we stopped by Freewheel Cyclery (I mean really, in a city with so many bike shops, hipsters get their own, how can I compete?) where Pumpkin had bought her new front chainrings/crank arms because she had somehow managed to crack her old one. We were trying to borrow a crank puller, since mine was incompatible with her bike. However, renting tools is $10/day ($30/6 months) at Freewheel and since I was going to use it for a grand total of 2 minutes, I didn't feel like forking up. If I didn't already have a toolkit, I think the $30 rate would be pretty reasonable (not to mention sustainable) and sure enough, we saw somebody working on his fixie.

With the first part of our night's plan a bust, we moved on to the second- dinner! I've been meaning to try NOPA for a while (not every restaurant gets to name a neighborhood) and knew reservations were totally booked so we decided to give drop in a try. Only a 1 hour and 45 minute wait, crazy. But I put my name down and we decided to walk around. I had seen park(ing) at Fell on my bike ride home so we stopped there to grab some free tea and sit in what normally is normally a parking spot. Most of them were converted thanks to rugs and potted plants. The transformation was impressive. We sat on the side of a 3 lane one way road, a main artery of San Francisco and felt completely safe. The newly green bike lane certainly helped.

Then we decided to check out a "game cafe" as Pumpkin put it which I very excitedly thought might mean a LAN cafe and STARCRAFT 2, but she meant the old school board games. At any rate it was closed, but every Wednesday they have game night courtesy of Gamescape. So you may find me on the corner of Oak and Divis next Wednesday!

Onwards we treked till a few doors down where the store was not only open, but there seemed to be some sort of party inside. As we peered in, somebody demanded we come in and explained it was a Earth Magic Product Opening. And it was truly magic. Desserts and drink, free massages, a tarot card reader and good music!

ZOMG, cupcakes, fudge, brownies, blondies, and blackberry turnovers! They even had non-alcoholic beverages so I happily sipped on some Martinelli's while listening to an amazing violin and guitar duo, The Jaunting Martyrs.

Good voices, solid talent on the instruments AND food? I was in heaven. So much so that while waiting for a free massage, we missed the call from NOPA to come back (my, doesn't time fly).

By the time we got back to NOPA, we had missed our table (and I missed the massage, darn). But when we were seated, we got the best seat in the house:

We watched this guy spin magic with pizza, warm olives, sardines, and vegetables all night. Not pictured is the giant fire grill to the left where rotisserie chicken hung and burgers and pork chops flipped. At first I was peeved to be sitting without back support (we were on bar seats) but the entertainment value quickly made it worth it.

But the best view (and taste) of all were our dishes. Mine a seared duck breast with figs, creamed corn and greens while Pumpkin had a pork chop with greens and beans. I thought both pieces were good, especially my duck breast which was moist and tender. Generally, I think pricey restaurants aren't worth it, but I think general ambiance, cooking entertainment, and quality of food made this night memorable.

So here's to SF, making an unplanned night on the town a total success. And, besides the pricy fancy food, the entire evening was free and surrounded by neighbors!

Passivity

2010-09-14T13:11:00.000-07:00

My officemate commutes over 1.5 hours every day. Each way. Apparently, Santa Rosa is far. In fact, even when she utilizes public transit, she still has to drive 10-15 minutes to get to the bus stop. That's my whole commute.

Yesterday, in a spout of laziness and self-perceived genius, I decided to ask her for a ride to the gym. After all, it is right on her way home and we were leaving from the same exact spot. At the time I congratulated myself because I would be able to avoid a hill (and I am forever daunted by hills) and it usually takes around 30 minutes. A seemingly long time a car could certainly beat.

I think what I neglected to remember (or purposefully forgot) is that when I ride to the gym, I see a line of cars a mile deep due to the Doyle Drive construction. So my 30 minutes bike ride became a 45 minutes car ride. Plus another 15 to wait and then walk with my officemate. That’s double the time.

While this happens all the time around the city, what really surprised me was on the last leg, when we hit the traffic and I really should have gotten out and biked but was encumbered by social etiquette to stay and keep my officemate company, I was surprisingly relaxed. When I pass the same line of cars on my bike, I always peer into a couple to see what these foreign beings are feeling. I’m always surprised it isn’t rage, but rather apathy. In fact, I could easily be convinced they are serene.

And in the car last night, surrounded by metal, cooled by AC and shielded from the world, I didn’t mind that not only bikers but JOGGERS were passing by. Because it was stop and go traffic, I wouldn’t have noticed the true [lack of] speed if it weren’t for the conspicious comparison right beside me. But even then I decided to ride it out, what could I do about traffic? What a passive stance! So unlike my problem solver, always demanding for peak efficiency, self.

So I guess although I can’t fathom doing it day upon day upon day, and I certainly won’t be asking for another ride ever again, yesterday I had a moment of community with my fellow car riders. And then, when I was finished rock climbing, I rode home over an even bigger hill.

Holy crap it's been 2 months!

2010-09-06T14:50:00.001-07:00

Hello everybody!

In case you were wondering, no I am not dead. There's no real good excuse for my absence unless you include looking and getting an apartment, moving into said apartment right after looking and getting a full time job. Pumpkin is very demanding sometimes. But today is Labor Day and as such I have the day off and time to take pictures, upload said pictures, and write about them!

What a great move and job! First off, I work for the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department, which is pretty much the coolest thing ever. The job is challenging and I deeply believe in the role of parks. In fact, this department is easily the reason why I can stay in SF. Otherwise the concrete jungle would eat me right up.

The place is fantastic, a charming 2 bedroom at 1000 sq ft. Which, believe it or not, is big for this city. It's been a long process of moving from the dream of a single family home into an apartment into the city but I'm glad I did it. Mainly because now my carbon footprint, according to carbon calculators, is pristine. I would link some but I'm not sure of the veracity.

How is living in a 1000 sq feet apartment with 3 people and no backyard access or compost (illegal for SF, but our landlord rather sue than comply)? It's pretty sweet. While 1000 sq feet seems small, it's big enough to have moved our furniture around 4 different times in just over a month. It feels different all the time! Our energy costs? Below the roof- $20 for 3 people. Perhaps the best part is my commute- 10 minutes on a bike and close/cold enough so I don't have to change clothes.

Although we don't have backyard access, we do have 2 bayview windows that let in a lovely amount of sun. Because of that, I am starting an herb garden- and the oregano and basil have sprouted! I'm so proud! For compost, we do it anyways and just find other compost bins to dispose in. It's a little less convenient, but worth it. Plus, with 3 people, we can split that chore quite easily (and I must admit, my roommates do a far better job than I do).

Speaking of which, the best part of moving is getting to live with 2 of my favorite people in the WORLD. One is Pumpkin and the other is my high school friend Jon (of earphones fame). We agree on the big things (being green, being laid back, and food) which makes the little things so much easier. Plus, now I get to cook more without having to do dishes- sweet!

And now it's time for a customary food photo:

Blackberry 5 grain pancakes and pan-seared salmon sandwich topped with tomato, egg, and caramelized onions and bell pepper. Strawberry smoothie. Perfect mix of Pumpkin and I's food preferences. And as far as I can tell, J will eat anything.

My Favorite Image From Good Magazine

2010-06-29T11:02:00.001-07:00

But my favorite image from Good Magazine is this one:

Basically, it portrays how 50 passengers and how much road space it would require to transport them. First is 50 people and 50 cars (astounding!), second is 50 people and 1 bus, third is 50 people and 50 bikes (so cute!). Actually, I guess the image also shows 50 people walking too! Often times we are so busy counting carbon emissions or mpg, that we forget about the aggregate effect. Also, next time I almost get run over by a car, I will attempt to explain this graphic to them when I pull up to them at the next red light. WHICH ALWAYS HAPPENS.

Nowhere was this graphic more apparent than at Pink Party this Saturday, which is basically a giant dance party on Castro and Market to celebrate acceptance and LGBT pride. As such, people flow in from all over the Bay Area to dance it up! And as such, the roads are completely stalled. On our bikes, we passed soooo many completely stopped cars it was almost heartbreaking. Lines of lights as far as you could see at pretty much every intersection (imagine the first image, at night time). A + L who were bikeless and stuck on buses, had a hell of a time getting to and from and ended up mostly walking. So while the bus image is cool, the 50 bikes are more fluid. Thus, it took Pumpkin and I 30 min to bike, while it took A + L an hour to bus/walk. Bikes for the win!

Biking and Walking Increasing With Better Urban Planning

2010-06-28T21:46:00.000-07:00

According to Good Magazine, a great little production, biking and walking are on the rise. While I debate the scientific veracity of this uncontrolled, single variable, correlational analysis, I like the results so I'm linking them here. The more the Department of Transportation spends on walking and biking routes, the more people walk and ride. Makes sense. Thanks L for the link!

Groupon and Advertising

2010-06-23T15:26:00.000-07:00

I see very little advertisements these days. While the average American (who I'm always talking about), sees 3000/day, I see maybe 10. Maybe. I never watch live tv and even on Hulu, I mute the advertisements to do something else. Once in a while I'll actually see the ads on various websites, but it's hardly compelling in their static state.

However, recently I signed up for Groupon, which is a website that sends you a deal of the day- usually 30-60% off. They do this by ensuring the deal giver a certain amount of customers. Power of the numbers sort of thing. Usually when my Groupon email comes, I read the title and ignore it. I don't need massages and another fruffy nonsense. But today, the deal was 45% off Let's Be Frank. And to my surprise, Let's Be Frank is a sustainable hot dog place. Maybe the first in the nation. They source their beef from 180 miles away and the mission statement was to create a slow fast food. Pretty sweet.

And at 45% off, the franks were 5.33/lb. That is a very respectable price, comparable to non-local, but organic Aidells (kicked out of Ferry Building Farmer's Market, oooooooo, scandal!). So I bought the max amount, 36 ounces or 12 links.

I am really happy with the purchase for a couple of reasons. (1) I have not tried to make my own sausages. While the endeavor would be interesting, sourcing it locally is not worth it. I already have plenty of meat in the fridge and don't feel like butchering it further than ground meat (of one animal) or slices. Maybe someday, along with my own bacon, when I start buying whole animals.

(2) I have only done a little research on sustainable sausages but pretty much resigned myself to the fact that everybody sources pigs from Iowa. Which let's be frank, Let's Be Frank does for their pork sausages. Their reasoning is that pigs do eat corn and so they should be as close to the corn source as possible. I think this is...strange logic at best so I'll have to question whether or not I want to buy their pork sausage (or spicy Italian sausage). Hopefully the latter is too spicy so I'll just end up with the beef sausages and call it a day. Because I really love Italian sausage.

(3) We eat less meat when we cook with sausages. One sausage is about 2-3 oz, and we'll eat 1/2 or 1 sausage per person. And since less meat, even if the meat you buy is sustainable, is better, I think sausages are a good, flavorful way to trick my palate into submission. It certainly worked this weekend when we had 4 sausages/person cover 4 different meals.

(4) Sausages are quick. They are individually proportioned and freeze well. And with my impending loss of freedom (more details later!), this may be the saving grace of it all. But don't think I don't see your trick Groupon, I already was thinking of buying sausages last night, so this doesn't count as an impulse buy right? Right?

Buying With Trust

2010-06-07T13:03:00.000-07:00

I'm a geek. I really like learning about things, researching, analyzing and coming up with best practices (as they say in policy). As such, I have no trouble spending a lot of my free time examining who I buy from. Last week, for the first time ever, I bought half a gallon of milk from Straus Family Creamery, a local creamery who seriously practices healthy farms. From their waste management to pasture raised cows to the classy glass bottles, this was one of the only websites that answered all my questions. And I had many.

But too often, I'm fooled by websites. For instance Tom's of Maine, whom we trust our teeth with, is actually owned by Colgate. Odwalla is Coca-cola and to compete, Pepsi bought Naked Juice. See this article for more shockers!

Like when Food, Inc included Walmart in their story, I'm on the fence about whether or not sustainable principles can be kept in the hands of faceless corporations only concerned with the bottom line. Like I said in the beginning, it's not the fact we eat meat that puts us into environmental crisis, but instead the sheer amount of it. Usually when things go bigger, it outgrows the natural system and externalities are pushed onto the environment to maintain a profit.

And while I don't mind people making a profit, I absolutely abhor that they may be making 2x the amount just by slapping organic onto the label. When one giant food conglomerate grows food conventionally next door to its giant organic field, the difference becomes negligible (except perhaps in pesticides). See Micheal Pollan's "Behind the Organic-Industrial Complex." While that difference is enough for others to pay 2x as much and call it a day, I'm not exactly sold. Although I certainly understand why they would stop at labeling- who has time to go through confusing advertising and purposeful misrepresentation? Sometimes, even if you do the research, the results are murky.

I want to trust in what I buy, I want to trust that they are doing the best they can. Nobody has to be perfect, except the Straus's who even agonize over the added weight of using glass for increased transportation emissions vs. being able to reuse glass containers 8x before recycling them. And for that, I gladly chose them over Silk (Conagra), Horizon Organics (Dean Dairy Co, largest dairy in the world) and even Clover Farms and Organic Valley who are non-local farm co-ops. This time, unlike a year ago, I didn't recoil in pain, I gladly paid 2x as much. Because that's the kind of trust I want to buy behind.

Called it! Trains are our future.

2010-05-13T11:51:00.000-07:00

When I heard of the new increased security measures and fees for flying after the Christmas almost bombing, I told my friend J that the only bright side would be people would finally take public transportation seriously. And sure enough, last week I saw a headline entitled, "Fliers’ pain is Amtrak’s gain." Oh, if only I was clever enough to rhyme like MSNBC.

"During the first six months of fiscal year 2010, Amtrak trains carried 13.6 million passengers, up 4.3 percent from the same period a year earlier. If the pace holds, the rail operator is on track to beat the record of 28.7 million passengers it set in 2008." 2008 being the year of record gas prices. So we see cost is a huge contributor. Airline fees go up, train travel goes up. Gas costs go up, train travel goes up. But what about time?

"Between 2006 and 2009, the on-time performance of Amtrak’s 15 long-distance trains improved from 30 to 75 percent. Upgraded sleeping cars, schedule changes and other improvements helped boost customer satisfaction scores from 65 to 80 percent." While 75% accuracy may not seem very good, it definitely competes with air travel. I know I certainly get peeved when my public transport is delayed (silently wishing I was on my bike). Because the airlines share just 5-6 national hubs, air travel later in the day is only 60% on-time. But even if Amtrak was 100% on-time, it's completely unfeasible time-wise for cross country travel. It'd take days to get from coast to coast.

Even so, what's really unfortunate is that people have a skewed mindset of how long it takes to travel by plane vs train. One tends to only account for the time the plane is in the air. They forget that often times, you arrive 2 hours early to get through security. They forget the time it took to get to the airport. They forget the extra time it takes on the other side to get picked up.

When my mother and I took Amtrak from Chicago to Ann Arbor, it took 4.5 hours and under $40. A plane's air time from Chicago to Detroit (DTW) would be 1.5 hours and $179. Seems like an easy equation of whether money or time is worth more to you.

But since the Amtrak station was inside downtown Chicago, it only took us 10 min (.5 miles) to get there, versus 25 min to 1+ hour (18 miles by car or M line) to the airport. On the other side, it took my sister 10 min (1 mile) to come pick us up, but it would've been 1 hour (50 miles round trip) by car. Adding it up, the train took 5 hours while going by airplane would've been 4-5 hours (includes 1.5 hours for security). So given the disparate ticket prices, the train clearly was the way to go, even though at first it looks like flying would be way faster.

So I wish people would treat the train right. With the advent of high speed rail in America (or at least California), I hope people start giving trains the same leeway they give planes. High speed rail spaced out more akin to airports rather than commuter rail stations. But faster security lines. More comfortable seats/amenities. Bringing your bike. Less fees. But probably, the same high ticket prices.

P.S. Berkeley recently did a study comparing emissions of different modes of transportation across the whole life cycle. The whole shabang- from manufacturing to tailpipe emissions. I hope the CA high speed rail pays attention since this method of calculation gives trains 155% more emissions but only gives airplanes 31% more. In fact, on a per mile basis, large aircraft travel was quite comparable to fossil fuel energized light rails. See chart below. Crazy.

Image Source Environmental Research Web

Golden Gate Bridge Sunset

2010-04-28T20:47:00.000-07:00

Sometimes you forget to do the touristy stuff. But it sure is easier with longer daylight hours! Awesome, made my worries go away instantly.

Transforming Leftovers- Taco Salad

2010-04-27T13:19:00.000-07:00

I get a lot of flack these days after I embraced Pumpkin's exclamation that I liked eating "garbage." But sometimes I even get lazy and you never know what leftovers will become. Even in the realm of food, one man's garbage is another's treasure.

Such as what I had for lunch today:

I call it taco salad (and chocolate milk). It was as tasty as it looks even though the bulk of it came from leftover nachos. I know, a truly heinous piece of garbage. After all, the chips get limp only moments after putting them into Tupperware and the whole thing in general is mangled mess. But I took the nachos home from dinner out (a necessity of skiing) on Saturday, despite dubious looks from R+J.

Fast forward to just hours ago. After throwing a mini-impromptu dinner party last night, I didn't feel like making an affair out of dining. So I opened the fridge but found nothing from the same cuisine, very few things already cooked, and eggs. Well, not entirely helpful. But the leftover nachos saved me, because with the chips come cheese, olives, and jalapenos. I put down a base of salad (one of our only convenience foods), topped on some more chips (these are now 4 months old and somehow have retained their crispiness- processed food kind of scares me), put on the nachos, put on some leftover refried beans (with the nacho cheese melted onto it), and topped it with freshly carmalized onions. You can call it garbage, but I call it delicious!

I HAD STEAK!!!!!! An Elaboration.

2010-04-14T11:42:00.000-07:00

While nobody I know quite shares my unbridled enthusiasm for meat, I feel like I have to disclaim the previous post. That steak was exciting for many reasons. (1) I haven't had steak in so long, I can't remember anymore and (2) IT'S STEAK!!! But this steak was particularly delicious because (1) I haven't had steak in so long, I can't remember anymore, (2) it was grass fed Marin Sun Farms top sirloin, and (3) I BROWNED IT IN BACON FAT!!!! To be fair, I think the caramelized onions and mushrooms contributed as well, but oh my goodness, so delicious!

As L cleverly asked me, how does one who only gets roast/braise end up with a steak? Well, when one is an amateur butcher, one sees steak everywhere.

First, 15 lbs of meat comes in an unassuming box.

Bike the meat box home! The C in CSA stands for community so the box is delivered, amongst many others, to a neighbor.

That box is not as small as it looks ;).

Meat should never defrost in a bag of it's own juices, lest you want to taste iron. Putting it over a rack and covering it with paper will allow it to breath and dry age a little. See award winning River Cottage Meat Book.

Cut it up! Just make sure it's against the grain.

One 4 lb roast becomes 3 steaks and 1.5 lbs of strips. All separated into reused containers (SF doesn't recycle styrofoam) and labeled with dates and sizes. The easier you make it for your future self, the easier it is!

Some slices are destined for grinding.

My perfectly marbled, oh so delicious, and sustainable steak.

I HAD STEAK!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-04-02T17:33:00.001-07:00

I've Been Thinking...

2010-03-28T21:29:00.000-07:00

Recently I've been thinking about the wisdom of radical behavior. On the one hand, it is far easier for me to theoretically stick to something 100% than to let myself have room for error. Because when I think to myself, ok, you don't have to ONLY eat sustainable meat, then it quickly becomes a slippery slope. And soon enough I'm buying 3 lbs of bacon, 3 lbs of sausages, and going to Popeye's. So much for the quarterly report!

The problem is, while I can easily live with myself radically, I don't want to end up as a hermit foraging alone in the mountains, drinking my own distilled pee. After all, I think happiness comes from those you surround yourself with, not just the ideals you hold yourself to. But at the same time, when I want to throw an impromtu BBQ for biking down from San Francisco to Menlo Park, the fact of the matter is, my roast/braise meat CSA is not BBQ friendly. The 3 lbs of sausages or chicken we picked up were far more popular and cheaper than the $40 slab of goat Pumpkin caltrained down.

Don't get me wrong though, my diet has significantly changed, and the way I feed people has significantly changed. While I'm discussing 3 lbs of sausage, we only used a fraction of the package. The rest is stored safely in my freezer. I only cooked 3 whole, out of desperation to eat sooner since everything else was being cooked from scratch. That includes pizza dough, tomato sauce, lemonade, and butchering the chicken into proper pieces.

And while we can debate the merits of having a BBQ in the first place, with it's emissions spewed directly into the atmosphere, I wouldn't have changed things for the world. 7 friends in the kitchen and in the garage (the theme being food AND bikes), cooperating to make a beautiful meal, which we then sat outside and enjoyed. Beautiful indeed.

The Beginning- Quarterly Report

2010-03-09T12:06:00.000-08:00

When I started this blog in the beginning I made a few [overly-ambitious?] promises that I wanted to update you on.

#1 Pledging to buy only sustainable meat, B-. Technically I could call this a win. After all, for meat I'm cooking with, I've gone 100% sustainable. Some parts were hard, such as staring at the Monterey Aquarium seafood guide for each and every seafood choice (often so confusing I have to leave it for another day so I can cross reference the internet). Some parts easy, such as with beef/lamb/goat because the CSA provides plenty. We actually have leftovers from month to month! But technicalities aside, I have to admit I cheat when dining out. Popeye's Tuesday $.99 for 2 pieces deal still slips into my diet about once a month and I can't deny my popularity. As for the temptress bacon, there has been some clever accounting where I'll host a eating-party and keep leftover bacon that somebody else has bought (this happened once, maybe twice). Tsk, tsk.

On the other hand, there has been so much real improvement. On Monday I inadvertently made a recipe from a vegetarian cookbook for rice and beans. Certainly the pre-sustainable cow me (the mad cow me, if you will) would have recoiled in disgust. Instead, I added a serving of beef, home-made tortillas, and wished for more vegetables (we had missed the farmer's market that week). And when I say serving, I mean the USDA serving size, a mere 5 ounces. I can distinctly remember scoffing at the equivalent visual (a deck of cards) in college. These days it's totally natural. I can even spend lunches without meat, without a problem. Life is all about progress.

#2 Seriously scrutinizing labor concerns of purchases, A. This one was new but has been relatively easy. Like I mentioned during my shameless plug for Rainbow Grocery, I loved that they paid their staff a living wage. Marin Sun Farms is a small family farm. I talk to the farmer's I buy from at the farmer's market (although admittedly, I mainly just ask for prices). Even Costco has amazing labor practices, their cashiers get paid over $20/hr. If I can't find a place where I trust their labor standards, I don't go in. Sometimes this means waiting for the next farmer's market, but most times, I've planned better than that.

As for non-consumable purchases, well, my big purchase in 2 months was $11.91 in computer parts. After that, another $18.39 for Aviator sunglasses, the only non-consumable part of our Valentine's Day extravaganza. It was definitely out of convenience too, Pumpkin had forgotten her already old and beat up sunglasses and we were due for a lot of biking that weekend. And I suppose it doesn't hurt that I find Aviators hot.

#3 Pledge to take public transit/carpool/bike, A-. This one was old and easy to continue. The more I bike, the more routes I discover and the more I remember where the hills are. Google Maps now provides a bike routes. Amar does it with grade, in the city. Livestrong with a point and click style route planner, elevation, and time estimate. And calories too, if that's your thing. Public transit, whether Caltrain, VTA or MUNI provides an excellent supplement. As does carpooling! Even I was surprised that I could minimize my driving down even more. I literally can't remember the last time I drove alone. I can remember my last carpool though!

#4 Eliminate waste from my life, A. This mandate suffers from vagueness but I'm calling this one a victory too. From reducing water waste to eliminating food waste, this one is my favorite (and probably Pumpkin's bane). What can I say, I love efficiency =).

Friday Friendsday (R+J)

2010-03-04T19:17:00.000-08:00

While visiting my good friends R + J to start an early morning ski trip, I discovered they had soundly trumped my navy shower. Even in the haze of the wee morning hours, I knew this genius must be publicized! So henceforth, Fridays are now the realm of my amazing friends and their equally amazing green conquests. Friday Friendsday!

I had told R about my navy showers/water saving antics a while back and in response he engineered this:

This seeminly inocuous assortment of tubes and wires is a homemade pump system. R+J's shower is now a resevoir for water, they've put the stopper in and take showers with slightly cold feet. Instead of going down the drain, the grey water is used for flushing toilets and washing laundry.

To do this, R simply bought a pump, which activates upon being dropped into the shower water. It then pumps water out of the shower and through the clear tube. The clear tube can be connected to either the low flush toilet toilet (shown below) or the washing machine. Not too shabby for <$20! And the tube usually stays connected to the toilet because it has it's own resevoir. As a low flush toilet, the tank actually holds enough water for multiple flushes. Truly genius.

Hats off to R+J!

Rainbow Grocery

2010-03-04T12:55:00.001-08:00

If you are lucky enough to have the AT&T phonebook in SF (or to find 10+ untouched in front of a neighboring apartment building), then you can find yourself 20% off coupons for each odd month, except November.

Rainbow Grocery is a worker owned co-operative and it's truly a hippie dippie store. You have staff that is paid a living wage, local and organic choices, and daylight harvesting (a mysterious and large contraption which almost eliminates the need to use electricity during the day). You have bulk bins and no meat (*gasp*). And by bulk bins, I mean rows and rows of beans, pasta, rice, flour (who knew there were so many?), nuts, and cereal. Unriviled. Then there are the bulk buckets which have tasty delights such as peanut butter. Ooo, don't forget the bulk oils or beauty products. We always bring our own bags/jars, which means a $.05 discount/bag, but more importantly, no waste. Which I suppose is why I forgave them for not selling meat (and somewhat hypocritically still selling dairy).

Bounty!

But the lack of meat doesn't really matter, because Rainbow is for non-perishables. My meat comes from the meat CSA (pick up tonight!! Woooo!), produce and eggs from the farmer's market. But those pesky carbs that Pumpkin enjoys so much is the realm of Rainbow. So yesterday, with coupon in tow, I spent $28 on walnuts, rice, black beans, brown sugar, tahini, and rice milk (somebody is also lactose intolerant). Enough to last...at least a month (see picture below). The bulk of the purchase were walnuts for a pricy $7.59/lb (on sale from $10.09). Although with coupon it was technically $6.07/lb, that is also technically the price sustainable meat. I know which one I rather have, but since Pumpkin puts walnuts in a very tasty homemade granola and bread (why she doesn't substitute this with some STEAK is beyond me), I suppose it is more than okay =D.

The most exciting purchase (the realm of Rainbow is expansive and exotic) was bulk tahini (which I shoveled into my own jar) for hummus. But then I realized, after opening my bean bags, that I had managed to shovel two bags of black beans instead of one bag of black beans and one of garbanzo. *Sigh,* not quite a true hippie.

How much stuff can a stuffed backpack carry?

2010-02-08T19:10:00.000-08:00

You would think laundry would be a relatively simple task. But of course, for somebody like me, it's a real endevour. Pumpkin's laundry needed to be done, so I thought I'd be the best s/o ever and bring it over to my house where I have a washer and dryer and then bring it back all done the next day. Door to door delivery, if you will.

Also, that meant I could run the laundry on a weekday night (better for the environment, because it puts less demand on the grid but weekends work too) and air dry the heavier items in the backyard.

Long story short, I ended up with this beast on my back the other day. It included a few glass jars (always useful), some CSA meat (always delicious), and my bike u-lock (which I normally find heavy, but not so much that day). Luckily the route was mostly downhill, but man, it's days like that I sort of wish I wasn't such a nut and drove my car. Sort of.

Done!

Err, I mean, done!

Who says leftovers are boring?

2010-02-04T12:37:00.000-08:00

One of my favorites, insert-meat-name-here hash. In this case, ham. Why is it my favorite? Well, I'm always not finishing carbs (potatoes), I always have eggs and onions on hand, and it allows me to have meat for breakfast! By the way, eggs easy over is the only way to have this. Yum, splayed egg guts!

Big Purchase- $11.91!

2010-02-03T10:04:00.000-08:00

I knew eventually my not-buying-new streak would end, and so it did on Monday. Just 2 days shy of 3 months without buying anything new. That I couldn't eat, that is. Sweet.

But this purchase was long overdue, and I was very happy with what turned out. Without further ado, my purchase(s):

Thermal paste and a SATA cable

If you recall back to my post about the trifecta of sustainability, you'll remember that my good friend O gave me a bunch of his old computer components. Well, over Christmas he also bought me Windows 7 and gave me his old 200 GB SATA hard drive and another better CPU. When I had installed the first round of his components, there was quite a maneuvering to get my IDEE hard drive, DVD drive, and CD drive to fit on the one IDEE cable. I had to leave the DVD drive out because it simply didn't fit. At the time I was thinking of buying a SATA hard drive to alleviate the problem, but lo and behold, another month of flexibility and a got one for free! This is the first time I've had a hard drive over 80 GB!

Of course, by that month, I had already packed away my SATA cable with my old motherboard and left it in my parent's house, which has since been torn down. So checked craigslist/freecycle and I asked all my nerdy friends if they had extra SATA cables or extra thermal paste lying around (and this is what took me a month). But they didn't (for shame!) which meant...buying new.

However, I knew I didn't want to just get it online, due to the environmental impact of shipping. During this time of pleading with nerds for parts, one informed me of a small shop right in SOMA. So off I went to Central Computers, which is just about as local as you can get for computers. By which I mean, the company seems based in China. Not only were the parts reasonably priced (student discount) but they had limited packaging too (everything I took out of the store is pictured).

At home the next day, I tore apart my computer, and by tore I mean I gingerly laid it down on it's side (on newspaper, so I wouldn't have to deal with carpet's static electricity) and opened it up. I unlatched my heat sink, unlatched the old [old] CPU, and put in the old [new] one, put a dime size amount of THERMAL PASTE (such a cool thing to buy), and then reattached the heat sink. Then I installed the hard drive, hooked up the DVD drive (instead of the CD drive that had fit on the IDEE cable) so I could install Windows 7 DVD. Closed it back up and installed Windows 7, which only required a little troubleshooting with O since it wouldn't recognize the old [new] hard drive so I thought I might have broken it in transit. But I didn't, and with a little more troubleshooting with O (a genius) over the HD audio, I FINALLY had a AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 4200+, 200GB SATA harddrive, 2GB RAM desktop. All for the low cost of $11.91. Told you it was a big purchase!

Awesome.

Another ski weekend!

2010-01-22T16:56:00.000-08:00

It's been dumping for a week while I have been relegated sick invalid, but is clearing up just in time with my sinuses. Which means, *drum roll,* another ski weekend at Squaw!

This weekend, my friends have blessed me with a snow tired, small sedan filled to the brink with 5 people (one of them is 6'2," not pictured), their luggage, plus 5 sets of ski gear. This reminds me of when I used to carpool down to San Diego after breaks at home and fill my smaller sedan with 5 people and their luggage (none of them being 6'2"). Of course I didn't have a lovely roof box which is pretty much like adding another huge trunk to the top of your car, so ingenious. It's all about a can do spirit!

But don't ask 6'2"'s butt. Because it was numb the majority of the ride.

Recycling Is Confusing

2010-01-20T15:10:00.000-08:00

Apparently in other lands, which are still in the United States, people cannot curbside recycle. For instance, Tuscaloosa, Alabama is celebrating curbside recycling for 60% of their residents. Whooopeeee (excuse me, I'm in a rather dismal state due to a cold and the death of health care reform today).

However, in the great city/county of San Francisco, we not only get curbside recycling, but municipal composting as well. I point out municipal because municpal and industrial composting can handle fun things like animal bones! They also do all paper, food scraps, and yard trimmings. Composting is relatively easy to remember although sometimes I'm stuck with a newspaper wondering how much life they can really get out of it if I recycle (so I usually dump it in the compost).

Which brings us to recycling. Because municipalities control recycling, they also control what they want (or can) recycle. This means when I've just finished the last drop of Rice Dream (a non-lactose alternative to milk), and open the carton to see metal foil lining the inside, composting is out. But can I recycle the carton? Well according to the carton, I should go to http://www.tetrapak.com/environment and find out! So I do, only to discover that if I can't (and neither can 80% of all US residents). Which is quite frustrating. But apparently, if I lived south 5 miles in San Mateo County, I could. But then I couldn't compost food scraps. *sigh*

Of the 3R's (reduce, reuse, and recycling), recycling is my least favorite because it is attached to consumption and is confusing (the 2C's, if you will). But I'm finally realizing how important the whole cycle of recycling is. It's so critical to look for recyclable (in your municipality) packaging or for things with the least packaging of all when buying. The hippie store or Costco is pretty good about this, as they are unconcerned with advertising. But you can take this concept anywhere. For instance, when I succumb to my primal desires and eat Popeye's fried chicken, I bring my own mesh bag so I don't take their container, and even deny them the pleasure of wrapping my bag in a plastic bag. Packaging eliminated!

When recycling, make sure your city takes it! In SF, you don't have to rinse (although it's nice, according to Joanne Wong, a waste manager for the city of San Francisco). She also thinks recycling is easy, but I guess that's her professional opinion. And that's it! I was pretty sure there was a 3rd step we learned (perhaps taking it out to the curb?), but stick a fork in me because I am done folks!

A Friend Asked

2010-01-19T14:58:00.000-08:00

"When's the last time you spent money on something other than food? "

I sat there thinking for a while, kind of appalled I couldn't remember, since I'm rather fond of my memory. But, chalk it up to the law degree for research skills, I pulled up my credit card statements online. Even though a credit card generates more paper receipts, I'm an exclusive user of it, unless the place is cash only (such as a lovely farmer's market). This is because it leaves a, for a lack of a better word, "paper" trail which means I'm on top of my finances. I also firmly believe in paying off the entire balance on time- don't look at me as a contributor to this economic downturn.

Anyways, I checked this month's running statement, and unsurprisingly didn't find anything. December? Still a bunch of groceries and restaurants. Finally, over 2 months back, on November 3rd, I confirmed replaced my broken earphones with a new set. That is the last time I bought something new (that I couldn't eat). I told this to another friend, who promptly replied, "You are nuts."

A fair point.

My Ski Trip

2010-01-13T14:26:00.000-08:00

This last weekend I made good use of my season pass and got 4 days in at Squaw. I also took up 10 of my friends.

It's pretty hard to organize for 10. People insist on leaving early, coming late, and driving their own cars. However, I'm happy to report that a little reminder to carpool about a week before the event, helps give people enough time to plan for pick ups. As such, we only drove 3 cars, even though 4 people came up Thursday, 2 left Friday (while 6 more came), and 8 people left on Sunday. All small sedans mind you- thank god for ski racks and back seats that fold down. Yah, most people are surprised when I tell them what I can fit in my parent's Toyota Echo (this time it was food for 10, 2 skies, 2 snowboards, luggage, and 4 people). The important key is a can do attitude!

Also, we completely minimized driving by taking the Squaw shuttle from our cabin in Incline Village for a massive carpool! It's quite a feat to get 8 people on a shuttle by 7:50am, especially when 3/4 of them have come in after 10:30pm the night before.

Another feat? Feeding 10 people. Here I raise my glass to eggs and building sandwiches on the mountain. We somehow managed to go through 3 dozen eggs, all of them pasture raised and organic. Egg salad is an easy but effective lunch. And when you build sandwiches on the mountain instead of the night before, they don't get soggy and you eliminated the need for personal ziplock bags. We just carried some bread and fillings in two bags. The last day we ran out of bread, despite me buying 3 loafs and Pumpkin making another, so we ate pasta on leftover plastic bags. It was the epitome of ghetto and I thank my friends for putting up with me.

Finally, and this came as a big surprise to me, the only meat we had was 4 slices of bacon, 2 lbs of ham and 5 sausages. Non-sustainable, so I really shouldn't have been buying it in the first place (but at least we ate in). I thought for sure people would hang me by the neck for the paltry amount, but instead we cut them into small slices and it worked out perfectly. The sausages peppered the pasta both nights, the ham morphed into breakfast and lunch. Egg and ham sandwich is deliciousness I discovered all the way back in junior high, and I was happy to see it revived for breakfast. That me would also have served sausages whole, leaving half the people behind or buying 2x as much, but new me held my breath and sure enough, we survived!

But let's be honest, I couldn't have done this without my great friends. Everybody was happy to carpool, take the early early shuttle, and were thrilled with the food/my over-planning. So thank you guys again such a great (and green) trip! I love skiing =D.

In the Second Most Dense City in America...

2010-01-13T13:44:00.000-08:00

Another beautiful discovery in Golden Gate Park.

A Family On Caltrain

2010-01-11T15:16:00.001-08:00

This was a truly adorable sight, 3 brothers, one mom and one dad (not pictured) all riding quietly on the Caltrain. I especially love the duo in front.

Navy Showers- 3 gallons of water/shower

2010-01-11T13:00:00.000-08:00

I have, what some may consider, a neurosis of green practices, but I'd like to take this time to quickly explain just one. Navy showers. According to Wiki the steps of a Navy showers are as follows:

"1. Turn on the water
2. Immediately wet the body
3. Turn off the water
4. Soap up and scrub
5. Turn the water back on and rinse off the soap
6. Turn off the water

The total time for the water being on is typically under two minutes."

And no, I haven't frozen to death. But because I use shampoo, conditioner and soap, I repeat 3 and 4 once, conditioning then soaping in the same round. My bottle of conditioner wants conditioner in my hair for an obscene 2 minutes, so might as well use that time to soap up.

Why is this important?

Well the average shower head flow is 2.2 gallons/minute. Average water pressure is 50 psi, and if I pretend I know what that means, then a 10 min shower uses around 14-16 gallons of water (see here). Holy crap, that's a lot of water! Well, if you take a navy shower, you save 11.8-12.8 gallons of water. SAVE! Amazing. Then, if you want super extra bonus points, you cut upon old milk gallon jugs and collect the cold water as it warms up.

Like so! Future dish washing water.

Other uses for milk gallon jugs? Filling them with water and putting them into your toilet tank for a simple hack (regular toilets use 3.5+ gallons of water per flush). Fill with water and put it in your fridge or freezer (if it can fit). Use as plant pots (poke holes in the bottom). Recycle. Of course, a post that was going to be one simple green tip, became 14. Enjoy!

No Blogs, No Worries

2010-01-11T09:42:00.000-08:00

[09:38] Elisa Lee: i think about being green a lot because of you

You don't realize all the people you affect, just by being green, but you do. So even if I haven't been blogging of my green exploits during the holiday season, believe me, they are happening. And I will soon be back to inspire the unseen masses!

But for now, take solace in your own green ways, and that it passes on and affects others. Thus, little change, becomes big.

Since joining the meat CSA, multiple people have asked me to link them to their site (and I'll do it one more time here you go!). After telling others of my navy showers my friend recently told me he saved his shower water to run the laundry. Of course, I have my green friends who I rant against Walmart with (big Organics can kiss my big- ok not that big, butt), but these are people I never expected to influence. SUV drivers, true consumers, wiser and older folks all fall to the wisdom of leading by example.

Lead on!

*Update: I swear this is true, another friend on AIM [14:41]: "i'm definitely not as green as you, but i try, and you remind me to be more conscious as well" What a great day!

Flexible, Shameless, and DIY- My Trifecta of Sustainability

2009-12-17T16:58:00.000-08:00

Part of living sustainable is being flexible. Oh tomatoes aren't in season? Perhaps I'll try my sandwiches with cucumbers instead (or perhaps I'll try and convince Pumpkin to do that but fail). Bus/train doesn't come right now? Take a walk, run a short errand, read a book, read a newspaper, read a magazine, send a txt, catch up on the phone with a friend until it does.

Part of living sustainable is being shameless. Bike seat stolen? Txt a bike friend, make a freecycle post. Accepting a stack of work pants from a shopaholic. Letting everybody know you need a carpool somewhere via facebook. Americans value independence, I am enamored with dependence. It brings us together and most times, people are happy to help you out (especially if you bike to their house to start the carpool). I couldn't do it without my amazing network of friends and family, but then again, who knows if it is the cause or effect of my dependence. In other words, do I have such a great network because I depend on them or because I value relationships over buying stuff?

This month I will be receiving two items of significant value, for free. (1) Rockband 1&2 (only missing a guitar), from a guy I dated a couple of times, and (2) an used Intel Core Duo CPU, from a long time friend who works for Microsoft. In both cases, the guys thought of me from fond memories.

For (1), we used to play Rockband late into the night so when he had to give it up upon moving into noise constraints, he thought of who it would bring the most joy to and he thought of me. That's fantastic, because I have wanted Rockband since it came out, but found the $200 price tag completely outrageous. I was flexible in waiting, and now, rewarded!

For (2), we've built computers together and he's constantly trying to get me to upgrade. After falling for consumerism once or twice in college, his case has been harder to plead. With each upgrade, my desktop remained unused for the intended gaming and instead for basic computing and so I learned my lesson. But I'll certainly take a faster processor to go with 2 GB of RAM (also given by him, at an earlier date) if it's free. Since the almost demise of my laptop (which Jon and I have taken apart and put together at least 5 times), I'm finding the desktops superior specs (and large monitor) very alluring.

I shamelessly accepted both gifts.

Finally, part of living sustainable is doing it yourself. If my bike gets a flat, I know how to fix it (whereas fixing a car would be far more complicated and potentially lethal). Cooking from scratch is cheaper than cooking from boxes, is cheaper from cooking from frozen, is cheaper than going out. In this case, I have to know how to connect Rockband to my Xbox 360 (like any xbox owner would). Perhaps harder is installing a CPU, but in terms of computer part upgrades, it's really one of the simplest (RAM being the easiest).

But why should they give? What do they get? Nothing (that they know about- but delicious homemade Christmas cookies and my gratitude are in store!). Or is it a question of what do they have to lose? Nothing. So then perhaps, it's a case of having everything to gain.

SF Muni Changes

2009-12-17T11:19:00.000-08:00

On December 5th, the SF Muni underwent "major changes in service." While the rest of the populace seems alight, it seems to me this was a long overdue change. Muni was created when SF voters decided to hand government the job of a plethora of competing private transit companies. This is why MUNI lines make little sense, whether traveling parallel a street apart or a slew of buses following each other at once. They were a legacy of competing lines, now under one authority, and thus, outdated. So, about two years back, Muni decided they would implement a Transit Effectiveness Project which tracked Muni ridership and other statistics for years.

Long story short, we are now seeing the final product. A few lines were cut completely, others shortened, but many have extended and/or increased service! For me, it doesn't make a huge difference because I rarely take the bus. But these days it's been colder and/or raining so Pumpkin has been less inclined to bike around, probably out of worry the cold/wet will turn her into a...pumpkin? Sometimes I have to follow suit but don't fret, dear readers, it is not without taking a stand for biking first.

Yesterday, I had my bike to get around downtown but didn't really feel like battling the uphill home so Pumpkin insisted I take her muni pass (yay!). After biking to the farmer's market, I took the 5 to connect to the 43 home. I usually ride the underground but if I have a bike, no matter what time (yes, I do get bitter when laws are overly expansive), they won't let me on so I have to opt for buses. While riding it, I discovered that 6 connects to the 43 as well, but more importantly the 44 at the same stops! Both are good options to get up the hill, so I really should have been taking 6 all these years (it also cuts in closer)! Everytime I think I know public transit, it surprises me again. Amazing =D.

Squaw Peaks!

2009-12-11T15:25:00.001-08:00

While I wait for the rain to subside (and the ground to possibly dry up) before I bike, a little note from sustainable cow. I'm going skiing this weekend!!! It's my favorite sport these days, with endless variation (tree skiing, jumping, moguls, groomers) and challenge (tree skiing, jumping, moguls).

This season, two of my friends and I got season passes to Squaw, which I just discovered is ranked best out of all the ski resort for environmental policies. See http://www.tahoeloco.com/archives/3627. They were ranked on habitat protection, protecting watersheds, addressing global climate change, and environmental practices and policies. Not that that affected our purchase, at the time we just wanted to get in on their 60 year anniversary deal and my Kirkwood vote was trumped. Oh democracy.

Good to know though! Ski resorts aren't exactly environmentally friendly. They ruin the natural landscape for slopes, encourage development, and those pesky snow makers/lifts/thousands of people driving up from the bay. And in the summer, when the snow is gone, the impact is so much more apparent (as you can see from my trip to Whistler last summer, above). But from all the "Keep Tahoe Blue" bumper stickers I see and from the actions of my fellow ski buddies, it's clear that more exposure to nature means more deep seeded environmentalists.

It's a beautiful place.

Public Transit- this should not be that hard.

2009-12-10T15:58:00.000-08:00

The San Francisco Airport is about 2 miles from caltrain, so one would think public transportation would be a viable and thrifty method to get between the two. One would be sorely mistaken.

On behalf of my youngest sister, I've been looking up ways to get in between the two and apparently, to get from SFO to Millbrae station (home to BART and caltrain), one has to take airbart to San Bruno BART (caltrain also has a san bruno station you can alledgely transfer to, but is a MILE away), then BART one station to Millbrae. For a total cost of $6.90. For 2 miles. At 15 minutes, if you time the 2 transfers right. Hah, not likely. The trip down from Millbrae to Mountain View station, where somebody else will have to pick her up in a car, is $4.25 (and 24 miles away).

This is so nonsensical!!! When getting of a plane, one has very few options. Your suitcase keeps you from walking, and you can't put a bike on a plane. So BART decides to charge a $4 surcharge for exiting the airport. And taxi's have a $2 surcharge (so that 2 mile trip is $11). We. Are. Just. Trying. To. Save. The. World. People. Throw us a bone! Public transit should not take at least 2x longer, and cost 2x more! What kind of viable business plan is that?

The kicker being, of course, that before BART, there was a free shuttle from Caltrain to SFO, and the biggest kicker of all being that it had a ridership of 350 people/day. Not viable. California is a convoluted and inefficient amalgamation of patchwork legislation, touted and passed under the guise of progress, but instead, makes life harder for us all. And no, that's not necessarily a dramatization. Just ask our fleeing businesses.

Eating Out

2009-12-02T12:05:00.000-08:00

Eating out is a tricky affair if you want to stay sustainable. You have to find some way to cleverly ask the waitstaff, without insulting them, where the meat came from. You have to order the correct portions or bring your own take out box, all the while beating back over eager waitstaff. You have no idea whether they recycle or compost back there. Finally, because restaurant standards of sanitary are dictated by law, they err on the side of safety which inevitably means more water wasted, less reuse (can you really keep those bones for tomorrow to make stock?), and more. According to Green Your, "[r]estaurants consume more energy per square foot than any other US industry—over 2.5 times the average commercial building; use large amounts of water; and produce an average of 50,000 pounds of trash a piece per year."

But Pumpkin adores eating out (or perhaps she adores not cooking), and sometimes there are occasions that need to be celebrated. Such as PASSING THE CA BAR!! So although she was treating me, I insisted on finding a place to suit our needs. It had to be cheap but sustainable. A seeming conundrum.

Then I found Careme 350, a California Culinary Academy student run restaurant. It seemed fitting to end my educational career with fine food prepared by students. And indeed the food was fine. I wish I remembered the fancy names but basically I had a mussel appetizer, steak entree, and double cream creme brulee dessert. While there were some minor setbacks, such as a runny creme brulee and over salted fries, I loved the entire experience and would highly recommend it to people who don't get hung up over the small things. We left extremely full and a little smarter since the professor chef was so willing to ask us questions about our meal and the dessert bar was a lesson right in front of us.

Best of all, they got to practice without wasting the food and we got to eat on the cheap and possibly sustainable. The waiter (a hospitality student), said that my steak was sustainably grown, but I think he might have been fudging it since they advertised that the fish was sustainably caught but nothing else. Either way though, the food didn't go to waste and we supported an institution that gives back to their community and will produce future chefs of the world. A profession I truly believe makes the world a better place. And for just $17/5 course meal too. Sweet.

Other yelp reviewers complained that the entire affair took 2 hours, but I was happy to slow down. It occurred to me one day that most of my lunches for 2 can be under an hour, and dinner at an hour. It made me sad that this was how often I got to see certain friends. When you go out, you are certainly paying enough to enjoy yourself, so why not do it? If a movie is $10 for 2 hours, then dinner should be at least 2 as well. So enjoy ourselves we did, cracking jokes, talking about whatever it is we talk about, eating in small bites, and really critiquing the food.

Oh we took Pumpkin's pork leftovers home in their box but the bread disappeared too fast to save. Work in progress. They became a delightful lunch the next day for me, supplemented with napa cabbage. Perfect!

Of Sunsets During Sunrise

2009-11-30T08:01:00.001-08:00

Some nights insomnia strikes. Luckily for my blog readers, this is one of them.

Under the dim light of my monitor and sunrise, I'd like to take this time to elaborate on my love of sunsets. At UCSD, I had the luxury of seeing sunsets any time I wanted. Our dorm room suite view looked like this.

No I'm not even kidding.

Since then, I've lived in various cities. I only consider myself home when (1) I've locked myself out and (2) I find somewhere to see a sunset over water, or in the landlocked cities, at least a nice park with a body of water. It always manages to brighten up my day and put things in perspective. And a chance to jam to music.

Because interestingly enough, I rarely see other people in my places of solitude. Here, at the end of an unremarkable set of townhouses, lies a view of the ocean in the midst of a mini-forest. It's a 4 minute walk from my house and my little haven. I've sung countless songs at the tops of my lungs without a complaint (not necessarily an indication of talent).

Further up Twin Peaks, above the parking lot vista point everybody knows of, are two 360 views of the entire city. I'll bike there when I have time and motivation, but I have to admit, after finding my little haven, I rarely go up there anymore. But I'm always happy when I do.

Down and around the corner, is Sloat park. I always see dog walkers. Dogs make me nervous on a bike, but I am happy that others are basking in the sun.

Continue further north, you'll hit Golden Gate Park, a 1,017 acre of city park heaven complete with a waterfall, a windmill, lakes, and bison!

The city peaks out behind this one.

Head west and there is Ocean Beach, with yes, the Pacific Ocean lapping at your feet. Although it's often times too cold for this, I at least try and dip my hands in.

They say the best things in life are free and I think I've truly internalized that lesson. But more importantly, how impressive is it that, in the second most dense city in America, there is room for so much nature? The green (and blue, and purple, and orange, and so on) nurtures us and gives us an escape from the grey concrete. It reminds us that there are important things in this world that aren't man-made and thus, can't be bought. It provides the critical link between us and the environment, and makes us lovers. For who in their right mind would willingly destroy their own sanctuary?

Giving Thanks

2009-11-26T00:11:00.000-08:00

A couple great things happened this year, that never will again, so let's begin with those. First was graduating law school! I'll be blunt- I am so thankful that is done and I'll never have to do it again. The endless workload, the anxious students, and the unconcerned administration made law school a pretty miserable experience. I counted down the days till I could leave and gone I am! Second, also related to law, was passing the bar exam! I studied for it mostly alone, opting to go for a no-name course instead of the monopoly brand everybody else went to. As such, I could learn my lessons online (thus avoiding anxious students) and saved 66%. Of course, I spent almost half of that on the meat CSA, but considering I was promising myself am inedible flat screen tv at the time for motivation, I think I made a great choice.

Some things that continued to happen this year, that I hope will keep happening. First, dating Pumpkin! Two years ago at Thanksgiving, I was recovering from a terribly broken heart. Last year, pumpkin was helping me put it back together. This year, it's full of love and for that I am truly thankful. Second, my family who has supported me through law school. I've really been blessed there. My uncle gave me lodging- despite our differences in cleanliness and standards of living. My parents for paying my way through the entire mess. My grandma for always giving 110% to help the family out.

This year's Thanksgiving was focused around sustainability. As such, I spent a long time researching turkeys. Free range, organic, family farm? Surprisingly difficult. But I'll elaborate on that later. For now, I'm thankful that both my sisters came home, my parents are home, my uncle came over, my grandma is here, and we trekked over to an old family friend's house to cook and eat, just like we always do. It's hilarious because only the "kids" (now pretty much all legal) cook. The adults, born on an island an ocean away, never had Thanksgiving growing up. Free of consumerism, filled with consumption, it's my favorite holiday of the year.

Long Time No Post

2009-11-23T16:30:00.001-08:00

Sorry to my paltry 2 followers for not blogging recently but I enjoyed a trip to Chicago and then Michigan which kept me off a computer. It's hard to be green while traveling, with all the transportation and eating out, but I did my best. My mom decided to follow my lead- she didn't look at the map once!

First, we opted for public transit instead of a car. For any big city, I would always recommend this option. Chicago's public transit is impressive and fast. It put us within walking distance of everywhere we wanted to go, whether museum(found 2 that were free that day), the bean (left), Hancock building (below), comedy club (free show), or food. We only missed the subway twice, and both times the next subway came within 7 minutes. Once it was 10:30pm on a weekday. That's impressive. I was musing as to why the SF Muni can't follow suit and joked it was because Chicago Transit Authority would face riots if people stood out in the snow for more than 7 minutes. Hmmm, seasons. Imagine that. By the way, at the Hancock building I would highly recommend going up t the 96th floor for cocktails, forwarding the $16 you would normally pay for the observatory towards food. Brilliant!

The Chicago bus system was clean, quiet, and new, but had too many stops (like bus systems usually do). When I caught the bus (so I could take the luggage) from our final dinner to Union Station (Chicago's Amtrak station), my mom beat me walking. She said the bus would pass her, then get stuck at a light or stop, and then she'd pass it, etc. This actually happens to me a lot when I'm biking. Then, depending on whether there is a hill or not, I am beat or beat the bus permanently. I rarely take the bus in SF, after biking for a year, I quickly learned where the worst hills were and always avoid them. Or, in the case of my house, take the least offensive version.

Then, off to Ann Arbor to visit my younger sister. As I gave away before, we took the Amtrak, which was $36/person (AAA membership discount) and 4.5 hours. A rental car one way would have been $195 (I'm not even kidding, I did a print screen) and 4 hours (says optimistic google maps). Plus, the rental car was available at the airport, which is actually 15 miles from downtown. Union Station was (obviously) walking distance. The choice was easy, and I'm glad we had it!

In Michigan, we carpooled twice (such as to get 2 miles from amtrak to her house), but mostly walked/bused. My sister lives very close to campus and the bus systems were free for everyone. We took it to go eat downtown and even stayed in to cook some nights! That ensured the leftovers we took home didn't go to waste, and it's always greener to cook in.

Finally, on our last day we rented a car to go to Detroit and the airport. My sister has a Zipcar account, which is a great company that parks cars all over an area (usually a big city or campus) and rents them out by the hour, covering gas (up to 180 miles) and insurance. You also have to pay a $50 yearly membership ($35 for students) and a one time $25 sign up fee. In SF, the rate is $7/hr which means combined with public transit and/or walking, there really isn't a need for a car in the city. And who can pass on the chance to drive the coolest cars (e.g. the BMW 3 series and the Prius and Insight hybrids)? We chose an Insight about 2 blocks away from our last meal in Ann Arbor and zipped (ha ha) off to Detroit.

Detroit was only midly depressing, but we had a lot of fun. My favorite part was, hands down Southern Fires which I found off yelp. Our entire dinner, complete with 4 sides and 2 mains, cost us just over $20 with tax and tip- delicious!

What a great trip!

Built In Waste

2009-11-10T11:28:00.000-08:00

Our culture isn't known for its repair-it mentality. When it costs about the same to replace (and upgrade!) as it does for parts and labor, the choice is clear. Some products are designed to fail- products are suppose to fail after the warranty expires, but not enough so you feel enraged (unless, I suppose, you are me). Some products are revamped what seems like yearly so you wouldn't be caught dead with the fat ipod mini now, but then again, a year ago, you wouldn't be caught dead with the skinny one. I have a Zune, which has always stayed skinny, and at just over 2 years old, is just about to be phased out permanently. But not from my collection.

It's not only electronics, it's clothing as well. Skinny jeans, then flared, then (unfortunately), skinny again. I've never been much of a shopper myself, so I'll continue to wear whatever is in my closet, till it's worn down. I know it reflects poorly on myself, that is, if you are only looking at the outside.

I'm usually a stickler for repairing things when I can. Not only do I get to find out how things work, but it usually is cheaper and pretty darn easy (usually because of my fine network of brilliant friends). For instance, when my earbuds fell off of my earphones too often, Jon, who has an incredible knack for fixing things, suggested I super-glue them on. Now I do it with every pair (pictured here are Pumpkin's). Jon and I (mostly Jon) have also installed a car radio, taken apart my laptop, sautered mp3 or monitor parts, and unindented my car (having 2 younger sisters calls for a lot of broken things). They are fun projects and I can look back and say wow. In our glorification of convenience we lose more than just former possessions.

My most recent battle with repair-it mentality and buying new came last night, when my parent's Epson printer decided to not print. After 20 minutes of having it fake a paper jam (where it would load up a piece of paper, claim it was jammed, and then cough it out promptly), my mom suggested it might be the low ink on the magenta and yellow. I heeded her advice. But the notion of the printer not working even though the black ink I was trying to use wasn't empty made me instantly mad, so I pulled out my own refill kit (back in college, when I had a printer) and tried to make something of it.

Well, as it turns out, Epson ink is the bread and butter of the company. For my parent's printer (the Epson Stylus CX7400), the cartridges are pressurized and the ink is put in 3 different compartments. See Ink Re-filling Experts. So even though I tried to jab my ink needle everywhere, it failed to take. I even tried screwing a new hole on top, but upon closer inspection of the article, it appeared to be completely futile so I gave up.

I remember buying this printer. My dad, ever the economic stimulator, insisted he needed a scanner one random afternoon. After putting up an eventually futile resistance (where I questioned his motives), I did some quick research and found the Epson printer on sale, for $100. It was a 4-in-1 and quite sleek looking too. And in black, it would match the desktop color scheme (tricky tricky marketers).

I never saw him use the printer as a scanner (which I knew he wouldn't in the first place). My dad is a lover of all things new and shiny, most of which lays abandonned in various areas of the house. But all of which he absolutely needed in the first place. I now see why the printer was $100, a full ink replacement would be over half the price of the printer. And since there was no way to buy used or to refill it myself, there is built in waste even if I wanted to spend the time to "repair" it.

Eventually I did, biking over to office max 15 minutes before it closed. But, of course, even after putting the new cartridges in, the printer continued barfing out sheets of paper. $%#^ me.

Freecycle- Changing the World One Gift at a Time

2009-11-06T17:02:00.000-08:00

Check out this piece of free magic I got off freecycle! I've been scouring craiglist for a couple kitchen items that I'd like, but don't critically need. For instance, I have an RSS feed for a food processor and cast iron skillet. I fell in love with the garlic press the first time I saw Pumpkin pull it out and use it, it's brilliant! However, it's definitely not $35 brilliant. Of course I've seen it for $14 at the store and one time I even saw it for $1 on craigslist, but it was in a city too far away. Sad.

Yesterday though, I signed off just before I was about to go pick up my [old] new garlic press for the low, low price of $0. My favorite price. Conveniently enough, the pick-up house was just 10 minutes walking from my house. And even better, the rain let up completely.

The experience was so great, the little old lady had it outside in a bag, as she promised. But since I saw somebody inside I rang the doorbell to thank her in person and gave her a sprig of fresh-picked rosemary. She said it was a "delight." Oh venerable vocabulary of the old. Then while walking back down the hill, her (and a man, who I presume is her husband) stopped their PRIUS to ask if I needed a ride.

Now, I walk and bike a lot through various areas. I remember sometimes in college, back when I hated to walk (first year I biked from the dorms to the dining commons about 200 ft away), I wished hard somebody would stop and pick me up. I was definitely going their way (we lived on a long street that dead ended). But nobody ever did. Then here is freecycle, that allowed me to share 1 minute with a stranger, that gave her the confidence to stop and offer a ride. Community.

What is freecycle? Basically it's a huge yahoo! group that people post onto (e.g. "OFFER: faux wood white blinds" or "WANTED: old Computer to surf the web"), organized by city. Your city could be on it, check! You get emails (and you decide how frequently) where you try and beat other people to the good stuff. It's competitive and this is the first time I've been successful.

If people freecycled instead of dumping, we'd be in a far better place. American households throw away 4.4 lbs of garbage a day (or 1600 lbs a year, or with the garbage produced in America alone, you could form a line of filled-up garbage trucks and reach the moon). See The [very frightening] Story of Stuff. Pathetic. But of course I used to be a lover of stuff too. More on this some other time.

Sudden Rains and Treasure

2009-11-06T14:55:00.000-08:00

As a Californian grown kid, the concept of seasons is a little jarring for me. I love my skis so I see snow every winter, but I have to carpool 4 hours for the privelge. Today, it's a rainy (and misty where I live) in San Francisco. This meant riding in rain, which I normally try and avoid to the greatest extent possible. But somehow, viewed from 2 stories up it seemed light and reality failed to check even after I was dressed and outside, so I got on my bike.

It was surprisingly pleasant. I had layered up and my route home was mostly uphill so I stayed warm. Just had to squint my naturally squinty eyes a little more to keep out the rain (if you squint hard enough, you can see beads of rain still on my jacket and that my pants are two different colors). I hopped in the shower to warm up and all was well.

For lunch I cooked parmesan chicken. This was the remaining breast and thigh from the scrawny chicken I had bought from the farmer's market on Sunday. In my haste to buy $4 organic and sustainble chicken, I neglected to realize why an egg farmer would be selling chicken. I'm guessing the chicken was tough from being old and free roaming. After a miserable failure at bbq dark chicken quarters (even after brining) I quickly learned the lesson and soaked the rest in lemon juice and turned to cooking tricks. See, there is no such thing as a cheap piece of meat, there are always ways to make meat juicy and tender. For chicken, I like to pan sear it on high on the stove before sliding it into the oven. See Pan Roasting. This seals in the juices and then allows you to cook the insides slowly.

Today, however, I chose to insulate the chicken by breading it, hence parmesan chicken. I'm a strange (resourceful?) cook, always making do with what I have on hand. So while I was out of flour, I had parmesan (in fact, one of the reasons why I decided to make chicken parmesan in the first place). To replace flour, I binged the coincidental answer: parmesan cheese! So I covered the chicken with parmesan cheese mixed with rosemary (which I picked fresh from across the street), dipped it in a beaten egg, and breaded it in homemade bread crumbs (I never eat carbs fast enough so they also become something else) sprinkled with paprika. What an amazing final product! Juicy and flavorful, the delights of organic chicken became clear.

When I flipped the chicken, I used the other half of the pan to heat up the tomato sauce. Then when both were done I cooked a side of vegetables. Here, my Asian side shines through again. I've managed to pair parmesan chicken with bok choy. And even though most people discard the bases of vegetables, they are quite tasty cooked. Notice them on the bottom right of the picture.

Now I'm off to pick up a free garlic press a la freecycle which is a community network that keeps stuff out of the landfills by giving it to others. One man's trash is another's treasure.

The Conundrum of Free

2009-11-06T00:55:00.000-08:00

Something I love possibly more than meat is being cheap (two loves only recently in conflict). So it's no surprise that when Pumpkin told me about the free art gallery showcases with free food/wine, I said yes! In fact, there was only free wine, and very little of it, but the art was quite good (if not a little modern for my taste). My favorite of the night was one artist who squirted out different colors of paint, building on each other to form vertical height. The result was a 3-D mirage of color. Almost worth the $10,000 price tag.

The first week in San Francisco is also free museum week and the Museum of Craft and Design generously opened their doors late. AND they had free food, in the form of salsa/guacamole/sour cream and chips, as well as tiny red velvet cupcakes and cream puffs. Even though I wasn't hungry yet (and I had thrown a half chicken into the fridge in hopes of making delicious chicken parmesan), I grabbed a bunch of chips, loaded it up with salsa and guacamole and called it night. Then, after finishing the first batch, I went for a second round. And two cupcakes. Oops.

For lunch, I had a hearty dim sum meal sponsored by my mom. We ordered the typical shrimp and pork dishes, and I gave no thought to sustainability (except that I was probably violating many rules, as shrimp is almost always from overseas, and poorly caught). I often hear of moralistic eaters in a conundrum at parties. Their mind pitted against their heart. After all, somebody important prepared and/or paid for the food. I have no similar qualms. If it's free, I'm eating it. My battle only goes as far as my wallet. If somebody is kind enough to share their food with me, I'm going for gold rather than waste and jilted feelings. Besides, food should be enjoyed in the company of others!

So today, besides my 3 persimmon (from the farmer's market) breakfast, my diet was completely dictated by others. It'll happen. But at least I got to tell my mom about sustainable meat production. Her eyes started to glaze over after I revealed the price per pound and she concluded with, "How do you know they aren't lying to you?" Oh Mom, ever vigilant.

November CSA

2009-11-04T16:34:00.000-08:00

Pork spareribs- 2.65 lbs
2 Chicken Half, White- 3.02 lbs
2 Chicken Quarter, Dark- 2.45
Beef Sirloin Tip Roast- 2.11
4 Goat osso bucos- .71 .42 .56 .47 = 2.16
Goat stew- .91
Lamb boneless shoulder- 1.70

= 15 lbs of meat!

I have to admit, when I found the box with my name, I dug through all the rest of the boxes to make sure I didn't miss anything else. And then when I opened the box, I was sure I was missing some. This looked like $20 worth of meat, not $85! But I've done the math (above) and sure enough it is- this is the sacrifice of Ecotarianism. Most of it seems pretty benign, and the chickens parts look downright large, although I've never seen a roast so small. I'll have to keep a careful eye on it to make sure it doesn't cook over medium-rare.

I have no idea what Goat osso bucos is, but such is the nature of a CSA. It really pushes you to try new things. And sure enough, I've already found a recipe I'm excited to try: from cooking for engineers! They always do a good job answer my obnoxious questions of "Why?" I tend to ask responseless recipes and frankly, do a far better job at taking pictures than I do (which should change soon, when I get my camera back). Besides, braising is a fail-proof way to ensure meat is tender and flavorful.

Christmas in November! Now if only I could find somebody to trade those white halves with...

Pledge to Sustainable Meat- An Elaboration

2009-11-03T14:20:00.000-08:00

Perhaps the hardest part of being an Ecotarian is my pledge to only buy sustainable meat. It's hard because (1) I've had a life-long love affair with meat and (2) the cheap Asian in me loves deals. Like a lot- I even like junk mail. So I'm accustomed to chicken being $.59/lb, pork $.99/lb, non-steak portions of beef around $2/lb and steaks around $4/lb. And let me assure you, that these are prices Safeway or Lucky's has at least once a month. This week, NY Steak is $2.99/lb at Safeway, while chicken is $.69/lb. Pause and reflect on how cheap that is, 69 cents!

However, after reading of the sustainable farm of Omnivore's Dilemma, of Fast Food Nation's factory farm created shit geysers, and of the UN report (which I cleverly read two years late, btw), it became clearer that to me that the the real cost of meat was much higher, and it became harder to ignore the environmental impact of it. I tried to rationalize by saying my own personal consumption was an indirect contributor to meat production.

But, as I mentioned in The Beginning, I cut down my own meat consumption anyways (darn psyche), especially red meat. It wasn't too hard at all, considering I was out-meating everybody I knew (and an average American eats about 18 lbs a month).

Then came along Pumpkin, lovely significant other, who linked me to Marin Sun Farm's Meat CSA. We decided to share the 15 lb/month package (less than half an average American), which is currently being supplemented with 1/2 of a Canada wild caught salmon that I bought, butchered, and froze last month, and a sustainable chicken I bought from an egg farmer at the farmer's market on Sunday. The package comes in tomorrow, and I am SO excited! A CSA is like Christmas every month! Will I get mutton? Will I get grass-fed beef? All I know is that it is local and sustainable meat from a responsible farm. I even emailed them and got a quick response back, yah, that's right, I talked to the people who raised my meat! Old school.

I'm unhappy to admit this, as the optimist I am, but Americans love their meat and will always love their meat. So while I commend many Ecotarians out there for being vegetarian/vegan (thank you!), the truth of the matter is, most of America will never follow suit. However, I think Americans can be convinced to cut down their meat intake, we are a nation obsessed with health as well (some are obsessed with quality, to which grass-fed beef is supposed to be the superlative). If we cut down by half, we can hold carbon emissions as they are. But if we can do it by more, or support local, sustainable agriculture like Marin Sun Farms, then environmentally friendly producers alone can satiate our demand.

Because let's face it, it's not meat production in general that is our problem, it's factory farms with their intensive land use, externalizing internalizations (such as waste), unnatural diet and the sheer amount of animals which make each other sick (unless they are pumped up with delicious antibiotics). See UN's Report. Waste is toxic in giant mounds but it's actually a natural fertilizer on a smaller scale. See Omnivore's Dilemma. Cows fed grass don't burp as much and if cows get to roam instead of being kept in giant feedlots, they don't get sick often enough to require antibiotics laced food. See Of cow burps, beef, and methane.

So not only am I helping reduce factory farmed animal demand, but I'm also supporting local (and small) farmers, who have practices I firmly believe in. In other words, I'm putting my dollar where my mouth is. With direct benefits.

The Beginning

2009-11-03T10:45:00.000-08:00

In the beginning, there was nothing. I was your typical American meat eater. In fact, I was probably worse. My mother, the best cook in the world (now retired, possibly out of laziness, but more probably a symptom of an empty nest), used to cook us at least two meats per dinner. And we ate family style (so I ate more than my portion). In my house meat, whether pork or seafood, was never a scarcity. But thankfully, neither were fruits and vegetables.

In high school, I got my driver's license which quickly became a vehicle for junk food. I'd often trick myself into going to McDonald's under the guise of studying. I also loved deals. For instance, this is a direct quote from my personal journal in 2002: "TODAY I WENT TO KFC AND HAD 3 PIECES OF CHICKEN, 2 CHICKEN STRIPES, 3 SIDES, 1 APPLESAUCE, FRUIT ROLL UP AND 1 STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE FOR THE ALL TIME LOW OF $3.64. YAY TO COUPONS, DEALS AND REAL FOOD! WUT A GREAT DAY!" I thought that was "real" food? Sad. Even varsity sports and a black belt couldn't keep me from gaining 10 lbs. But my grandmother put me on a strict diet and we gained control again.

In college, when I started cooking for myself, I kept the two meat theme. Having a steak? Why not pair it with a sausage too? If there weren't two meats, then there was one huge huge hunk of meat. My burgers were 1/2 pound plus monsters. Unsurprisingly, I put on 20 lbs again. Note though, that I was starting to cook a lot, albeit usually assisted by Costco.

In law school, I moved in with my uncle, who is a fitness king and, more ominously, could directly report to my mom. I still kept up some of my old ways like buying bulk from Costco (Dino Buddies!). But I was starting to learn that cooking from scratch was a lot cheaper. Dino Buddies were around $7.99 from Costco (with coupon). They were two pounds of already cooked (and breaded, and fried) chicken. But chicken thighs at Costco were $.99/lb so Dino Buddies were 4x as much per pound. How is this a deal?

Then, one fatal day in mid-february 2008, I read a report from the UN about how cattle-rearing generates more global warming greenhouse gases, as measured in CO2 equivalent, than transportation. I had already become a public transit/carpool/cycling nerd, an anal recycler/composter/reuser, and an abhorrer of waste, but this time, it was too much to ignore the carbon footprint my meat consumption was wreaking. So, I cut meat out of one of the meals I ate a day. Most of my friends laughed in response. But this was a true beginning, I started looking at meat differently. It no longer had to center my plate, nor did I need two versions of it. It quickly became limiting red meat consumption to once a month, as cows are the worst eco-offender.

And now, we are at the present. After less than a year of my omit-meat-one-day-a-week challenge I am ready to be an Ecotarian- with every purchase I make, I'll seriously scrutinize it's environmental impact and labor concerns. As such, I pledge to only buy sustainable meat. I pledge to take public transit/carpool/bike. I pledge to eliminate waste from my life (Americans throw away 1.3 pounds of food every day, or 474.5 pounds per year). More on what this really means to follow.

p.s. Picture is of a 8 lb cross-rib roast (for $12) that I made.