EcoQuaker

Making Reversible Headbands June 16, 2009

Filed under: Books, Sewing — EQ @ 9:28 am

After reading Twenty Wishes by Debbie Macomber, my book club decided that each of us should make a list of our own.  While none of us were widowed, we could all relate to the desire of fulfilling lifelong wishes of our own.  I had a difficult time coming up with 20 wishes, but on my abbreviated list was a wish to own a pair of rubber boots (check!) and to learn how to sew.   I was thrilled to find a nearly new sewing machine at a garage sale for just $10!  I bought it on the spot, and jumped into projects.  My first project was to sew smocks for my girls (you know, the kind in the Little House on the Prairie, where they don them over dresses and boots and use them to pick berries and climb trees).  I’m still working on that one (a little advanced for a beginner like me, but I’ll post the pics when I’m done!).  My next project were these: reversible headbands.  Believe me, it was SO much simpler and SO much more fun to complete a project in a matter of minutes!  And my kids love wearing them.  I’ve decided these’ll make nice little gifts for big and little girls alike!

(See my rubber boots in the background?!) 

headband T1

headband A

headband M

And here is the other side:headband reversable T

headband reversable

 

Dazey Butter Churning Fun June 2, 2009

Filed under: Health, Nutrition, Recipes, Reusing — EQ @ 11:09 am
Tags: , , , , ,

My daughter declares homemade butter tastes “SO much better” than the store-bought stuff.  Of course, she’s the same kid whose teeth lined up perfectly to the marks in the partly eaten cube of butter we found when she was two.  So, she was ecstatic to help make eat the butter we made a while back in our old-fashioned Dazey Butter Churn.

dazey butter churn We used two pints of organic Straus Whipping Cream.  I chose this because it comes in cute little glass containers which can either be returned to the store for reuse and recycling, but we reuse it in our home.

straus whipping cream

We simply dumped the two pints into the Dazey butter churn, and we churned away!  We passed it around and each had several turns spinning the blades.  At first, it was easy and fun, but then it got gloopy and more difficult for little muscles to conquer.  It also helped to have a nonstick pad down to help keep the churn in place.

daisy butter church

After making whipping cream, keep beating till it starts sticking together in little chunks.  The solids will eventually all glob together, leaving you with two finished products: buttermilk and butter.

Here’s a picture of the buttermilk:

buttermilk

We used the buttermilk in our favorite whole wheat buttermilk pancakes.  And here’s the picture of the finished block of butter:cube o' butter

We had to wash the butter first, getting all the buttermilk out by using a flat wooden spoon/spatula (sorry, no pictures… I was busy washing the butter!).  In a steel bowl, we ran cold water onto it while mashing it.  Make sure to use very cold or ice water as warm will melt the butter.  After the water runs clear, continue mashing it till most of the liquid is gone, then pat it into any shape you’d like.  We wrapped ours up in plastic to keep fresh in the fridge, and part of it went into our french butter dish. 

Of course, freshly baked bread was a necessity after making butter!  Bon appetit!

buttered bread

For those who don’t have a Dazey Butter Churn, you can use a food processor to churn your own butter, or one of those rolling ice cream makers, or simply a plain ol’ mason jar (you just need more muscle power)!  The great thing about making butter is that you don’t end up with any wasted by product.  It can all be used!  And kids (well, adults too!) get a kick out of seeing how butter is made.

 

Tending Gardens, Tending Hearts May 15, 2009

Filed under: Budget, Community, Composting, Faith, God Stuff, Lent, Ponderings — EQ @ 1:57 pm

I’ve been busy tending things: worms, chicks, vegetables, friendships, flowers, kefir, fragile hearts. We’ve been busy building a greenhouse, a chicken coop, a chicken run, a tree house, a straw bale compost. I’ve been trying to destory an anthill that sits a foot away from my greenhouse. Naturally. With no success. And things have been blooming without any tending from me: junipers, irises, dandelions, weeds, mint. And other things are growing because of me, like the pile of laundry and ironing, messes in the kitchen, my kids.

After Lent’s focus on the brokenness of the world, it’s refreshing to see the cycle of life in growth, in flower, in birth, in restoration. But somehow, I’m still stuck in feeling the pain of a friend who has an unknown disease, of another who’s marriage is in the season of winter, of another who’s husband lost his job, of another who lost her child and her home within the same year. People are hurting out there; people are hurting right here, people I know and love. It drives me crazy when I hear of all the ‘ministries’ that have to close down because the tithing belt has cinched another notch. I think it’s a blessing in disguise. When God shuts one door, he always opens another, and if we use these creative minds God’s bestowed upon us, I bet we can get pretty creative in ‘ministering’ to others, those among us who are hurting. Without the money.

So, I’ve been tending to some broken hearts as well as the chickens and the vegetables in my garden. They just need some love and care, time to strengthen, time to grow, some weeding, a little sunshine and nourishment.

And yes, the vegetables and chicks need all that too.

 

Soyrizo spaghetti sauce April 14, 2009

Filed under: Recipes — EQ @ 8:29 am
Tags: , ,

I love spaghetti! Uh, spaghetti sauce to be more specific. When I was a kid, I’d ask just for a bowl of spaghetti sauce, douse it with Tabasco sauce, and eat it like chili.

Over the years, I’ve tried to make my Mom’s spaghetti sauce to no avail, so I make do with my own: it’s a vegetarian sauce with grated carrots. I don’t really follow a recipe, just throw in ingredients I have handy so it turns out a bit different each time. The other day, I happened to have some soyrizo around, and threw that in along with with my sauce, and it was a slightly spicy, savory hit!

Here’s what I do, more or less:

In a fry pan, saute with a dash of olive oil till soft:
1 chopped onion
2-3 minced garlic cloves

Add 1/2 to 1 package  soyrizo (depending on your taste and desired level of spicyness) and brown slightly.

Add and simmer 20-30 minutes:
1-2 grated carrots
2 cans stewed tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
Italian herbs/seasonings to taste

Enjoy!

P.S.  Try it with some Tabasco sauce!

 

Plastic bag drying rack April 13, 2009

Filed under: Budget, Consumption, Recycling, Reusing — EQ @ 9:11 am

When the kids go off to school, they take their lunches with them.  It’s cheaper, more nutritious, and they pack their own lunchbags themselves so they eat what they make. . . and their small school doesn’t provide hot lunches so they have to bring a lunch or go hungry.  The kids would stuff apples into one plastic baggie, a sandwich into another, carrots and celery into yet another baggie, and perhaps a cookie into a fourth baggie.  That’s times two.  Oh wait, then there’s the adult who packs his own lunch every day too!  Times three.

At the end of each day, we had a stack of plastic baggies waiting to be washed and dried.  (We recycle the bags till there’s no life left in them to reduce our consumption, make less of an environmental footprint, and it simply costs less to reuse!)  None of us wanted to wash them because the washing process resulted in wet bags being squished together and NEVER completely drying out!  We had to individually dry each bag inside and out to use again.  We don’t like standing there and drying baggies.  I have much better ideas of how I want to spend my time: sewing pillowcase dresses, knitting, biking, sweeping, gardening, heck- even cleaning the toilet!  So, eventually those baggies would accumulate on the left side of the sink (dirty side) and wait till someone was willing to brave the war with the baggies.  OR someone would be happy to wash them all (like me) only to have them sit on the right side of the sink (clean side) to air dry (that’s how I dry all my dishes, much to my husband’s horror).  And sweet husband would succumb and do the drying.

One day that said sweet husband disappeared into his workshop for half a day, and came out with this:                                                          drying-rack-frontHis ingenious idea has made plastic bag washing and drying a delight in our household!  The washed bags simply sit on the rack, drip water right back into our kitchen sink, and are whisked away to the drawer for use in another life. 

closeup-drying-rack It will get another use this summer when my  herbs are in full bloom: an herb dryer!

For those of you who don’t have the means to make one of these yourselves, you could always use chopsticks in a jar to dry your baggies.  Just place your washed bags over the chopsticks, and let the air do your work.

 

Is the Kindle Eco-Friendly? March 30, 2009

Filed under: Books, Consumption, Green — EQ @ 2:07 am

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Some are touting the Kindle as the “green machine” in literary circles.  At first, it would appear it is just that:  a device that is saving trees one electronic Kindle at a time.  If we only bought a Kindle instead of real live books, which are made of real live paper, which comes from real live trees.  Yet I have to wonder if the Kindle is truly as eco-friendly as one might think it is?  After taking the toll of manufacturing, transporting, energy wasting, wireless covering, recharging, human laboring, land filling, and high costing effect on this earth of ours, is the Kindle still greener than the old standby of perusing (or devouring) bound books of paper and ink?   

 

I wish I could say that I’ve personally had the benefit of reviewing the Kindle as I have the traditional method of reading books.  But the $359 price tag barricades a lot of book lovers from trying it out, though for someone like me who likes to stick my smeller into many books at once it would be nice to tote a 10.2 oz Kindle as opposed to a heavy straight-armed stack of books around. 

 

Aside from the benefit of its size and weight, the Kindle is a manufactured product,  which means that the Kindle not only takes up natural resources to produce the end product, but that the Kindle is made with human hands, Chinese hands to be more specific.  Is the Kindle a fair-trade product?  Were the hands that produced this luxury for Americans treated justly, humanely and respectfully?  Were they given a fair price for the work done, a safe environment to work in, fair labor hours?  I can’t answer those questions, but it must be asked of all manufactured products:  are the people who labor over our products treated well?  What of the cost of transporting thousands of Kindles from Asia to America?  What of the cost of packaging and delivering the same product into the hands of the consumers once in America? 

 

While it’s true that most everything we do requires energy consumption, one must take into consideration the things behind the scenes.  For example, one can download a book from Amazon in 60 seconds flat.  How does that book get from Amazon’s library to your Kindle?  By their Whispernet technology, a wireless coverage in all 50 states… just think of all that energy expended to supply Kindle followers of unlimited entertainment.  Or how about the battery installed in each Kindle?  Amazon thoughtfully installed a rechargeable battery, but one must use power to recharge that said battery.  Where does that electricity come from?   

 

Even though I still like the idea of the Kindle, regardless of the fact that it takes resources to produce it, I still have a difficult time with its fast extinction.  Americans want bigger, better, faster, easier, and they want it NOW.  Though the Kindle debuted a short two years before, Amazon has already introduced Kindle 2.  I hate to think of all the resources wasted on Kindle 1, and I’m bothered even more to think of where Kindle 1 will end up.  It will go to the landfills, along with the dinosaur computers and ipods of the first or second generation.  Then, I wonder how soon will it be before Kindle 2 will be near extinction?

 

So, before I answer if the Kindle is eco-friendly, I think you have to ask yourself what kind of reader you are, because you will find that the answer lies within yourself.  You see, if you are a reader who likes to own your own private library and buys every book you read brand new, then the Kindle may be more of an eco-friendly choice for you.  If you are like me, however, and utilize the public library for your reading pleasure, and only buy books (used ones, at that!) when you absolutely must have a copy, then the Kindle may be a less eco-friendly choice for you.

 

But if you’re also like me, and like having gadgets and a world of books at your fingertips, then take the greener road and buy a used Kindle, even a lesser, older, slower Kindle 1 version.

 

Or you could wait…

 

… ‘til Amazon figures out the true green path of Kindledom:  public sharing of good reads to good friends.  After all, the best books in life are meant to be shared, not kept. 

 

Sharing is what being an eco-friend is all about.

 

Global Worming (making your own composting worm bin) March 13, 2009

Filed under: Composting, Consumption, Recycling, Reusing — EQ @ 10:29 pm

“The Environmentals” made this video on how to make your own composting worm bin.   Kinda makes one want to go make one this instant!  Check it out:

http://vimeo.com/2235946

 

Being Grateful for Temper Tantrums March 7, 2009

Filed under: Faith, Ponderings — EQ @ 11:01 am

The house is unusually quiet right now.  Five minutes ago, it was filled with crying, laughter, questioning, phone calls, sweet little voices.  I’ve got an empty nest, and my oldest has yet to reach the double digit status.  But they’re gone.  For now. 

 

I’m realizing how my world is so wrapped up in the needs of three other little bodies that when they’re not here, I feel a bit lost.  Whose mess do I pick up now?  Which quarrel do I stop?  What food do I prepare for lunch?  Which hand needs to be held?  Whose tear do I wipe away?  Where is the scrape I need to tend to and kiss?  Who do I tell to be quiet?  To get along?  To use words, and nice ones at that?  Where is that body that barely squeezes on my lap but still needs a snuggle?

 

I admit, I grow weary doing the refereeing, the washing, the cleaning, the cooking, the guiding, the disciplining, but I miss those kisses and hugs, the snuggles, the smiles and laughter.  And right now, I even miss those temper tantrums too. 

 

Today, I am choosing to be thankful for those difficult moments because that means I still have three extra bodies to hold.  I am grateful for all the moments God’s gifted me with my little ones.  Because life can get unusually quiet in so short a time.  And next time, it may not just be for the day, but eternity.             

 

Woodstove Soyrizo lettuce wraps recipe February 26, 2009

Filed under: Health, Recipes — EQ @ 11:25 am

I made these the other night on my woodstove:soyrizo-lettuce-wraps-1

Here’s the recipe:

  • in a cast iron skillet, brown one package of soy chorizo
  • add 1-2 cups kidney beans
  • add 1-2 cups black beans
  • add 1 cup cooked brown rice
  • add 1 cup water, or enough to make thick consistency
  • let simmer covered, till hot and flavors have fused (I left it on there a couple hours because I was out of the house, but 20 minutes should do fine)
  • serve with rinsed whole lettuce leaves (we used romaine since that’s what we had around, but it worked well since it’s a firmer green than others, and held the soyrizo well)

soyrizo-lettuce-wraps-2

Enjoy!  It was a winner in our household!

 

Lent is not about subtracting, but adding February 25, 2009

Filed under: Faith, God Stuff, Kid Faith, Lent, Ponderings — EQ @ 7:55 pm

In discussing this Lenten season with my two elementary-age daughters tonight, my eldest declared she would give up sweets for the length of Lent, starting tomorrow. 

“Tomorrow?  Why tomorrow?  Why not begin today?” I asked, thinking it is Ash Wednesday, the official starting point of Lent.

“Because it was someone’s birthday today and we had birthday treats in school,” she replied, somewhat sheepishly.

I asked her how giving up sweets would bring her into a closer relationship with God.  She thought on this a while before responding, “Mom, it’s not about giving something up for Lent that brings you closer to God, it’s about adding something.”

She then proceeded to tell me how she was going to  spend daily time with God for the Lenten season.  At eight, she is adding a significant step and subtracting a lesser one.