Vert-à-Go

“The frying pan’s too wide…’ –Joni Mitchell, “My Old Man”

I have been posting sporadically lately. In April, my marriage came to an abrupt end and I have spent pretty much the entire time since then dealing with the exquisitely painful unpleasantness that a breakup entails while still trying to go through the necessary forward motions of everyday life with small children.

The final decision came at the end of the entire household’s two-week-long bout with the flu (the worst of my adult life). During the time I was sick, I could barely walk to the kitchen, let alone cook anything. We survived for a week on ginger ale and crackers, soup from the freezer and a cardboard box, poached eggs on toast, grilled cheese sandwiches, and later, takeout Vietnamese noodles. Anything in the fridge pre-dating the flu began to quietly turn on us while we all lay there inert–the neglected vegetables in the crisper, the chocolate milk, the leftovers from our final dinner party.

I didn’t really cook for quite some weeks after the morning of Thursday, April the 9th. There didn’t seem to be an awful lot of point, as I couldn’t bring myself to eat anything anyway. The kids were content enough for the time being with their rather monotonous rotation of 5-minute meals punctuated with fruit and cucumber and yoghurt and baby pita breads, while I ate a cracker here and there and rapidly lost the weight put on last autumn while I was sick with a succession of colds and heartaches. Reluctantly, having been anti-vitamin my entire life, I embarked on an annoying new regime of supplements to boost my decrepit immune system. I can’t tell you what a depressing moment it was to learn that my drastically depleted iron stores would simply never recover just with food alone. Even if I wanted food, it couldn’t help me now.

It wasn’t just that I didn’t have an appetite, however. Along with the music I couldn’t listen to anymore, the movies I couldn’t watch, and the photographs I couldn’t look at it, there were suddenly a huge number of meals and foods that were now off-limits because of the memories they stirred. Seventeen years together, just short of 14 years married–well over 3000 meals shared together. No more. I couldn’t yet contemplate a future of special meals cooked alone and eaten alone after the kids were in bed. I took curry off the menu indefinitely, threw the brown sauce into the garbage and shoved the tiger prawns to the back of the freezer.

Even when I managed to start cooking properly again, the reminders continued unabated. The everyday placemats that were a wedding present had to go. I grimly started separating the dishes: the bowl given by my mother-in-law, the tray made by his friend, the birthday wine glasses and carafe from my parents. Cookbooks were pulled from their cosy alphabetical home and piled into two teetering stacks. His, Nigella Lawson, Gary Rhodes. Hers, Nigel Slater, Mark Bittman. I had almost forgotten how cooking used to be a shared pleasure and how many kitchen items we had given to each other over the years–the pots and pans, the pestle and mortar, the new mixer, the beautiful big salad bowls. Who would take what? Who would start new? Could either of us manage to divorce the memory contained in these much-loved familiar objects and happily go on using them like nothing had ever happened?

I rearranged our table seating so that the empty chair wouldn’t be so obvious, but I still couldn’t seem to prise myself away from the square certainty of number four. I had made and eaten plenty of meals on my own with the kids over the years, but soon realised that there must be a deeper psychological reason for why after 20-odd years in the kitchen, I was suddenly incapable of figuring out how much food to cook for three people. The cold unwanted spaghetti pointed its long thin fingers at me accusingly as I tipped it into the compost hours later. Legions of leftovers lingered long past their welcome. I realised anew that the base amount for most recipes seems to be four people and despaired over the questions, “How do you split an egg in half?”* and “What if two is not enough and four is too many?”

Not quite six weeks later, I’m (mostly) eating and cooking again. I’ve even slowly cleaned out the fridge of the rotten two-month-old reminders of meals gone past. I expect that it will be some time yet before I’m fully up to speed with the new status quo in the kitchen and the table. In the meantime, I’m taking an enjoyably selfish pleasure in eating what I want when I want, and am mainly concentrating on making food to keep us well, make us happy, and create new memories (like my mom’s waffles, which we had this weekend). We’re also all eagerly awaiting the warmer weather that will let us finally get out in the garden and start growing something of our own to eat again. Spring is here, even if it doesn’t feel like it quite yet.

My mother’s waffles

• 2 cups flour (I like to use half whole wheat)
• 1Tb baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 Tb sugar
• 2 eggs (separated)
• 1-2/3 cups milk
• 6Tb vegetable oil

Mix egg yolks and milk–add dry ingredients–add vegetable oil–then stiffly beaten egg whites.

Serve with syrup, berries, jam, and vanilla ice cream. Personally, I like a bit of bacon on the side. You may think this is rather weird, but hopefully we can agree to disagree.

Serves 4–or a family of 3 with leftovers. Who doesn’t like leftovers?

* To split an egg in half, whisk it gently together and divide it that way. If the yolks and whites have to stay separate, just try using the smallest egg that you have. It really probably won’t make that much difference to the final recipe.

This is being posted very late; apologies. If you can possibly come out to the meeting, please do–the show of support tonight will be instrumental in whether the garden goes ahead or not! Even if you don’t want to take a garden plot yourself, if you support the plan, please come along anyway to show you are still in favour of the proposal in general.

Agenda: Park Programming change in Ashworth Holmes Park

7-7:10 pm Welcome and Introductions:
Presenters, topic, agenda

7:10- 7:30pm City of Saskatoon: Marieke Knight, Community Consultant
• Purpose of tonight’s meeting
• Review of the community garden Approval Process (use of City of Saskatoon park land)
• Purpose of a community garden? Recreational Programming change: What does this mean
• Why the Ashworth Holmes Park location?
• Garden Regulations and guidelines
• Sign in sheets to express the following: your support for the garden/your support and interest in having a plot/your objection to the garden as proposed

7:30-7:50pm Presentation: Garden Collective Representative
• Discuss site and possible design
• Potential costs involved for gardeners and why a cost
• Community use of the garden
• Why a garden?
• Next meeting for interested gardeners

7:50-8:05pm CHEP (Child Hunger and Education Project)
• brief description of CHEP’s work
• possible support CHEP could offer to the Community Garden Collective

8:05-8:20pm Power point: Operating Community Gardens

8:20pm Questions/Comments/Sign up

Caswell Community Garden/Ashworth Park site public consultation meeting

When: Monday 11 May, 7pm

Where: Caswell Hill School gym, 204 30th Street W, Saskatoon, SK (Google map)

For more information: Elizabeth Bekolay, garden committee/Marieke Knight, City of Saskatoon (975-3381)

The Rights and Democracy delegation at the University of Saskatchewan presents its second annual forum entitled “Fair Trade Forum: Producers, Consumers and Social Change” tonight at the Frances Morrison Library Theatre.

This forum will address questions such as “Why fair trade? What are the goals of fair trade? What are the benefits of fair trade? And how does fair trade relate to issues of human rights and development?” from both a global and local perspective. Speakers will include STM sociology professor Dr Darrell McLaughlin, Marla Carlson of the organic prairie farm co-op Farmer Direct, and Carole Samdup (Rights & Democracy).

When: Thursday 23 April 2009, 7-9pm

Where: Frances Morrison Library Theatre (basement), Saskatoon (Google map)

Admission: FREE (refreshments will be served)

For more information: Facebook event page, or email rightsdemocracy.uofs@gmail.com or stan.yu@usask.ca

I confess that I do struggle against climate dread. Any new news about the environment is very seldom good news, and it is demoralising beyond belief to walk home from the farmers’ market with a bag of locally-grown organic food, only to be blown past by someone chucking a McDonald’s wrapper out of the window of their Hummer.

But we can’t sit around and do nothing, even if somewhere out there our evil twin is itching to replace every ounce of carbon that we struggle not to emit. And the food that we choose to eat can make a real and instant difference to our ecological impact. It’s important to educate yourself about what is in the food you eat, where it comes from, how it is produced, and what impact it has on your health, the people who grow it, the animals who provide it, and the environment. As Wendell Barry puts it, “Eating is an agricultural act.” We need to pay attention to our food, not just be mindless consumers.

Here are a dozen things you can do right now to radically reduce your food footprint. Most of them will save you money and improve your health, too!

1. Eat less meat

2. Grow some food to eat this year

3. Eat seasonal, locally-produced food

4. Eat organic food, preferably locally-produced

5. Choose fair trade food products

6. Only eat fish and seafood from safe and sustainable fisheries

8. Reduce your consumption of industrially-produced/processed/fast food

7. Walk, bike, bus or carpool to the store, market, or restaurant

9. Plan your meals ahead and keep track of leftovers to avoid food waste

10. Drink tap water, not bottled water, and don’t forget the carbon/water footprint of other drinks too

11. Compost your food waste

12. Use more energy-efficient ways to cook your food

…and check out Reiko’s Bento Lab–-just because I guarantee it will make you smile!

(this post is mostly a rerun–but it still says everything that I want to say. Happy Earth Day!)

Hi, I am very eager to find a community gardening opportunity in Saskatoon. Can you point me in the right direction?

- J

There’s still a few bits of snow lingering on the ground, but already I’m seeing a lot of interest from people who want to start growing some of their own food this year. Many people are planning on digging up part of their own yard (or lawn!), but many others are looking for a community garden plot–an excellent alternative for apartment or condo-dwellers, house renters with unsympathetic landlords, and those with shady home lots. It can be hard to find a space, though. Where to start?

1. Join the Saskatoon Community Gardening Network. This group meets every month or two to discuss issues related to gardening and community gardening in particular. It’s a great chance meet fellow gardeners and find out more about what’s going on across the city. To get on the contact list and find out the next meeting time (May, likely) call Dana at CHEP (Child Hunger & Education Program) or email dana@chep.org. You can also join the Facebook group here.
2. Apply to join an established garden. There are a number of established community gardens in the city, but spaces can be at a premium and there are often waiting lists. City Park CG will be back in business this spring after having extensive work done last autumn to improve drainage/flooding problems, but it cannot take any more gardeners this year. The Nutana CG (which lost some plots because of an electrical box installation) is also already full. Sadly, it will only be at its current home near Broadway for one more growing season, as a building is being planned for the site. We’re working with the city to find a suitable new site in the area. If I hear of any individual gardens that are accepting new gardeners directly, I will post about it immediately.
3. Help start a new garden. There is a group of people trying to get a CG established in Caswell right now, but finding a suitable site has caused delays.  You can join the Caswell Community Garden Facebook group here to get updates. Another group is trying to get set up in Eastview. Again, I’ll be posting more info about how you can help soon.
4. Get in on the ground floor with a new garden. St. Martin’s United Church (Wilson Crescent & Clarence Avenue) is creating a community garden on the church grounds and is now taking applications for this summer. You can pick one up at the church office or call 343-7101 to get one mailed/emailed to you.
5. Get in touch with CHEP. CHEP has been very involved with supporting community gardening and finding places for people to garden for years. It has a number of garden sites and is always looking for ways to expand the number of plots available. You can have a look at its community gardening brochure (somewhat out of date, but which will give you a general idea of how things work) here. Dana can help you apply to get a plot at the various CHEP community gardens and also has up-to-date info on other gardening options throughout the city. Phone her on 655-5322 for an application (the deadline is coming up fast–20 April) or email her at dana@chep.org.
   
6. Let your city councillor know that community garden access is a priority. The City of Saskatoon is quite supportive of community garden initiatives in theory, but there are currently some logistical and organisational challenges which I’ll be writing about in detail soon. Another major challenge is finding a suitable permanent space that also has easily available water for irrigation. In the older neighbourhoods in particular, there is less green space available than one would think.

I’ll be posting more information on specific gardening opportunities, and will also have advice on finding alternatives to a community garden plot soon.

(Thursday: I’ve edited this post to reflect the conversation I had with Dana from CHEP this morning)

Photo by Danny Pederson-Bradbury

Steep Hill Food Co-op’s next no-markup day is Thursday, 2 April. This means non-working members save 13% and non-members save 25% off their bills. Working members will get a further 10% off shelf prices. It’s a great chance to stock up.

Steep Hill carries:

• Bulk organic grains, flours, cereals, nuts, seeds and beans (some locally-grown)
• Organically-grown fruits, vegetables and juices
• Locally-baked goods and baking needs
• Organic/free-range eggs
• Organic beef, naturally-raised chicken and pork, and Saskatchewan fish
• Herbs, spices, coffees and herbal teas
• Special dietary needs
• Personal care and household items

No-markup day at Steep Hill Food Co-op

When: Thursday 2 April, 11:00am-6:30pm

Where: Steep Hill Food Co-op, 730 Broadway Avenue, Saskatoon, SK (Google map)

For more information: Steep Hill Co-op, (306) 664-4455

A doomsday email about proposed US food safety legislation (H.R. 875) has been making the rounds, scaring a lot of people and making a lot of unfounded and rather hysterical claims. Here’s the beginning of it, which will give you the gist:

House and Senate are about (in a week and a half) to vote on bill that will OUTLAW ORGANIC FARMING (bill HR 875). There is an enormous rush to get this into law within the next 2 weeks before people realize what is happening.

Main backer and lobbyist is Monsanto – chemical and genetic engineering giant corporation (and Cargill, ADM, and about 35 other related agri-giants). This bill will require organic farms to use specific fertilizers and poisonous insect sprays dictated by the newly formed agency to “make sure there is no danger to the public food supply”. This will include backyard gardens that grow food only for a family and not for sales.

If this passes then NO more heirloom clean seeds but only Monsanto genetically altered seeds that are now showing up with unexpected diseases in humans.

…etc, etc

I have not read the bill myself, but there have been rebuttals to the email’s extreme claims from a number of well-respected sources. Here are a few:

Tom Philpott at environmental news blog Grist asks, “Would new food-safety legislation criminalize organic farming? No.”

Food and Water Watch has a background page to H.R. 875 that tells you exactly what the bill does and does not cover. And a blog post on the subject.

Professor and author Marion Nestle ‘debunks 6 viral myths about H.R 875′ at The Daily Green.

Factcheck.org also has a great post dealing with a differently-worded email, from a decidedly non-panicked backyard organic gardener.

To sum up: although it looks as if it could certainly do with an amendment to protect small organic farmers from the worst expense of new food safety compliance rules, H.R. 875 will NOT force organic farms or backyard gardeners to use specific fertilizers and sprays, nor will it outlaw heirloom seeds. If you receive this email, please reply to the sender with the above information to reduce unnecessary panic.

The very first meeting of the parliamentary sub-committee dealing with food safety in Canada has ground to a halt because of a Conservative filibuster.

The Conservatives on the committee objected to an NDP amendment, which proposed adding more meetings to the committee’s schedule and which would also limit it to examining last summer’s deadly listeriosis outbreak. Tory MP David Anderson then got up and spoke for over half of this Wednesday’s meeting, while Conservative committee chair Larry Miller denied repeated opposition requests for Anderson to sit down:

Anderson defended his tactic after the meeting: “We wanted to work with these folks. This is a very serious issue. It seems like they’re playing games with this, and we’re not prepared to do that.”

But New Democrat MP Malcolm Allen, who proposed the amendment, scoffed at that.

“If we wanted to do the work, Mr. Anderson wouldn’t have filibustered for the last hour and fifteen minutes,” Allen said.

Opposition MPs noted there are already 47 names on the proposed witness list, and they argued there isn’t enough time to hear them all unless more meetings are scheduled.

Miller said it’s doubtful Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz–who is expected to face tough questions over his handling of the outbreak–will appear as scheduled next Tuesday.

Miller added it’s not clear when Ritz’s schedule will next allow him to be there. (Canadian Press)

Canadians need to tell Stephen Harper to put a stop to the political game-playing and let the committee get on with the vital work of ensuring a safe food supply. Food Safety First (the action campaign started by Canada’s food inspectors) has a sample email that you can send:

Dear Prime Minister Harper,

Perhaps you don’t know that your MPs on the food safety committee hijacked the very first meeting and prevented the committee from getting anything done.

I hope you agree that playing politics with food safety – as your MPs have done – is despicable.  I urge you to order the Conservative MPs to allow the committee to do its work, and quickly.

Please get back to assure me that you do not condone the behaviour of the Conservative MPs that prevented the committee from getting on with the job of making our food system safer.  I’d also like to know what you have done to ensure the committee can get on with its work.

Yours sincerely,

YOUR NAME HERE

Let Prime Minister Harper know that you care about ensuring a safe food supply and the 21 people who died from eating contaminated meat last year.

Members of the Saskatoon Co-op are invited to attend the Annual General Meeting, which will be held Tuesday 21 April at 7pm.

The March newsletter addressed a number of environmental issues, outlining the Co-op’s green policies and initiatives. At the upcoming AGM, We Are Many Festival (WAM) organisers will be putting forth several environmentally-friendly resolutions. You will have the opportunity to vote  on LEED-standard building for all new Co-op edifices, independent energy audits of all existing buildings, and local food procurement (aka the perennial problem of pork, pickles, and potatoes).

If you’re a Co-op member (if you’re not, you can sign up at any Co-op store), come vote for these changes–they can have a dramatic impact on our city because the Co-op is one of our biggest companies.

When: Tuesday, 21 April, 6:30 registration, 7pm call to order

Where: Commonwealth Ballroom, Hilton Garden Inn, 90 22nd St E, Saskatoon (Google map)

For more information: Saskatoon Co-op web site, WAM Facebook group

The Saskatchewan Eco-Network will host the 4th Annual Saskatchewan Environmental Film Festival (”See the Change, Be the Change”) this weekend at the University of Saskatchewan.