But tonight I'm making an exception and am watching Forks over Knives about Drs. T. Colin Campbell and Caldwell B. Esselstyn, The China Study, plant-based diets, medicine, and cancer and heart disease rates. It's a rather dull exploration of the science with patient case studies and interviews with the doctors. But it is absolutely fascinating. And persuasive! I highly recommend it . . . and I understand a cookbook will be coming out soon!
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
A Forkful
I don't enjoy cautionary documentaries like An Inconvenient Truth or Food, Inc., usually avoiding them like the plague even if I agree with and support their findings.
Vegetarian Milestone
In the 1970s, as I understand it, veggie loaves were one of the staples of a vegetarian diets, right up there with salads and beans, and, anecdotally, one of the major (squishy, flavorless) turn-offs of a vegetarian lifestyle. They've fallen in popularity, though--few vegetarian cookbooks even include recipes for this ostracized food anymore. I've never made one and have only eaten the quick, frozen Amy's version. And I liked it, just like I used to like meatloaf--and the gravy and mashed potatoes that usually accompany it. Veggie burgers are a hipper, crispier option, but I wanted to try a loaf. And I knew just where to go.
Vegan Lunchbox blogger Jennifer McCann updated, promoted, and popularized the veggie loaf with the Magical Loaf Studio, inspired by Seventh-Day Adventist dinner or entree loaves. Yep, the church. Because they are committed to the veggie loaf the way Latter-Day Saints eat Jell-o. And this wonderful site allows you to input your choices for ingredients and then pops out your own personalized recipe.
Here's mine:
My First Veggie Loaf
1/2 cup walnuts
2 TB olive oil
One onion, diced
One large garlic clove, minced
One large carrot, peeled and grated
Two celery ribs, diced
One cup mushrooms, cleaned and chopped
2 cups cooked lentils
1 cup cooked brown rice
1/4 to 1/2 cup vegetable broth, as needed
1/2 cup cooked oatmeal
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
2 TB ketchup
Several dashes vegetarian Worcestershire Sauce
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 tsp. salt
Preheat the oven to 350º. Spray a loaf pan or 8x8 square baking pan with nonstick spray and set aside (an 8x8 pan makes a crisper loaf).
Grind the walnuts into a coarse meal using a food processor or spice/coffee grinder. Place in a large mixing bowl and set aside.
Sauté any vegetables you've chosen in the olive oil until soft. Add to the large mixing bowl along with all the remaining ingredients. Mix and mash together well, adding only as much liquid as needed to create a soft, moist loaf that holds together and is not runny (you may not need to add any liquid if the grains and protein are very moist). Add more binder/carbohydrate as needed if the loaf seems too wet.
Press mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until cooked through.
Let the loaf cool in the pan for 10 to 15 minutes, then turn out onto a plate or platter and slice. Serve with potatoes, vegetables, and vegetarian gravy, if desired.
Cold leftover slices of make a great sandwich filling.
--Magical Loaf Studio and Mommy Hungry
And it was pretty good, though I would add more ketchup and Worcestershire Sauce and saute the vegetables longer (I was in a hurry). But it has good crunch and texture.
I just wish I'd made mashed potatoes and gravy!
Vegan Lunchbox blogger Jennifer McCann updated, promoted, and popularized the veggie loaf with the Magical Loaf Studio, inspired by Seventh-Day Adventist dinner or entree loaves. Yep, the church. Because they are committed to the veggie loaf the way Latter-Day Saints eat Jell-o. And this wonderful site allows you to input your choices for ingredients and then pops out your own personalized recipe.
Here's mine:
My First Veggie Loaf
1/2 cup walnuts
2 TB olive oil
One onion, diced
One large garlic clove, minced
One large carrot, peeled and grated
Two celery ribs, diced
One cup mushrooms, cleaned and chopped
2 cups cooked lentils
1 cup cooked brown rice
1/4 to 1/2 cup vegetable broth, as needed
1/2 cup cooked oatmeal
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
2 TB ketchup
Several dashes vegetarian Worcestershire Sauce
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 tsp. salt
Preheat the oven to 350º. Spray a loaf pan or 8x8 square baking pan with nonstick spray and set aside (an 8x8 pan makes a crisper loaf).
Grind the walnuts into a coarse meal using a food processor or spice/coffee grinder. Place in a large mixing bowl and set aside.
Sauté any vegetables you've chosen in the olive oil until soft. Add to the large mixing bowl along with all the remaining ingredients. Mix and mash together well, adding only as much liquid as needed to create a soft, moist loaf that holds together and is not runny (you may not need to add any liquid if the grains and protein are very moist). Add more binder/carbohydrate as needed if the loaf seems too wet.
Press mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until cooked through.
Let the loaf cool in the pan for 10 to 15 minutes, then turn out onto a plate or platter and slice. Serve with potatoes, vegetables, and vegetarian gravy, if desired.
Cold leftover slices of make a great sandwich filling.
--Magical Loaf Studio and Mommy Hungry
And it was pretty good, though I would add more ketchup and Worcestershire Sauce and saute the vegetables longer (I was in a hurry). But it has good crunch and texture.
I just wish I'd made mashed potatoes and gravy!
Home on the Free-Range
Spring has brought more than warmer weather and longer days: the kids are playing further afield than our backyard. They are spending more time shooting hoops (and making baskets!) at Neighbor Boy's house; they are heading a few houses around the corner to play with a friendly pack of other neighborhood boys (it's all boys; all the girls in the area are either much younger or much older.) In fact, they're having so much fun that they put their backpacks down right off the bus and don't return until dinner two hours later. We've gone over the rules--always ask if they want to leave our yard or move from one house to another; listen to the adults wherever they are; follow the Golden Rule when playing; come home when I call; follow our health and safety rules and don't do anything that gives them a funny feeling. It's a little bit of freedom in a small range. And I can always here or see them out my open doors and windows.
Still, it's rather bittersweet for me (and downright unsettling for Mama). Sure, I want independent, social, confident children; I just didn't know I'd be so clearly left behind so soon. It's almost as if winter break was this dividing line between old play-with-mom/in-the-backyard and new free-range-around-the-neighborhood-with-other-kids. My first irrational thought was "wait! I have all these books and articles about fun things we can do and make!" and I thought we weren't ever going to do any of them again. Yes, overly dramatic and overreacting. And, yes, Lambeth, empty nest. I haven't really been worried about safety . . . .
But I put my foot down today when Sis asked if they could go to a kid's house whose name they didn't know. The boy was outside and I didn't recognize him at all, though Neighbor Boy swore he knew him. He was older and lived up and around the corner, said he played with the pack of boys all the time. I told Sis and Bud no, they couldn't go to his house along with Neighbor Boy because I had dinner on the stove and couldn't walk with them to see where he lived and meet his adults and get a phone number. Their faces fell, but I was adamant. The boy understood and said they'd come play on our end of the block; Neighbor Boy kept urging me to change my mind (he does that a lot these days, after putting Sis or Bud up to asking me for things that he wants, like playing inside!). Everyone went back to playing ball. And I promptly went to order a copy of Lenore "I Let My 9-Year-Old Ride the NYC Subway Alone" Skenazy's Free-Range Kids: How to Raise Safe, Self-Reliant Kids (Without Going Nuts with Worry).
I know I made the right call--I can't send them somewhere I don't know with someone I don't know. But I was honest when I said I would walk over sometime and see where he lived and meet his adults. Right after I check with the other neighbors! Sis and Bud admitted at dinner that they had never seen him before and seemed confused but not bothered by my refusal to let them go. I explained health and safety. And realized this was only one of the first of many times I'll vet their friends and say "no" to plans . . . at least until they stop asking or listening.
Can't we go back to fairy houses and sidewalk chalk alone together?
Still, it's rather bittersweet for me (and downright unsettling for Mama). Sure, I want independent, social, confident children; I just didn't know I'd be so clearly left behind so soon. It's almost as if winter break was this dividing line between old play-with-mom/in-the-backyard and new free-range-around-the-neighborhood-with-other-kids. My first irrational thought was "wait! I have all these books and articles about fun things we can do and make!" and I thought we weren't ever going to do any of them again. Yes, overly dramatic and overreacting. And, yes, Lambeth, empty nest. I haven't really been worried about safety . . . .
But I put my foot down today when Sis asked if they could go to a kid's house whose name they didn't know. The boy was outside and I didn't recognize him at all, though Neighbor Boy swore he knew him. He was older and lived up and around the corner, said he played with the pack of boys all the time. I told Sis and Bud no, they couldn't go to his house along with Neighbor Boy because I had dinner on the stove and couldn't walk with them to see where he lived and meet his adults and get a phone number. Their faces fell, but I was adamant. The boy understood and said they'd come play on our end of the block; Neighbor Boy kept urging me to change my mind (he does that a lot these days, after putting Sis or Bud up to asking me for things that he wants, like playing inside!). Everyone went back to playing ball. And I promptly went to order a copy of Lenore "I Let My 9-Year-Old Ride the NYC Subway Alone" Skenazy's Free-Range Kids: How to Raise Safe, Self-Reliant Kids (Without Going Nuts with Worry).
I know I made the right call--I can't send them somewhere I don't know with someone I don't know. But I was honest when I said I would walk over sometime and see where he lived and meet his adults. Right after I check with the other neighbors! Sis and Bud admitted at dinner that they had never seen him before and seemed confused but not bothered by my refusal to let them go. I explained health and safety. And realized this was only one of the first of many times I'll vet their friends and say "no" to plans . . . at least until they stop asking or listening.
Can't we go back to fairy houses and sidewalk chalk alone together?
More Ugh
Sleeping pills.
Statins.
Meat.
All these have been in the news recently. The news being that they will probably contribute to your failing health and early death.
Studies have shown that sleeping pills like Ambien, Lunesta, and Sonata, even 20 pills a year, can significantly raise the chance that you'll develop cancer and/or die.
Another study shows that statins, drugs like Lipitor, Crestor, and Zocor that help lower cholesterol, raise your risk for Type 2 diabetes and will probably result in 100,000 new statin-induced diabetics.
And meat. Eating meat raises your chances of heart disease, cancer, and death. When it's bacon or processed meats, the risk rises up to 20%.
Wow.
Are we doing anything right food and medicine-wise? It's all relatively dire.
Statins.
Meat.
All these have been in the news recently. The news being that they will probably contribute to your failing health and early death.
Studies have shown that sleeping pills like Ambien, Lunesta, and Sonata, even 20 pills a year, can significantly raise the chance that you'll develop cancer and/or die.
Another study shows that statins, drugs like Lipitor, Crestor, and Zocor that help lower cholesterol, raise your risk for Type 2 diabetes and will probably result in 100,000 new statin-induced diabetics.
And meat. Eating meat raises your chances of heart disease, cancer, and death. When it's bacon or processed meats, the risk rises up to 20%.
Wow.
Are we doing anything right food and medicine-wise? It's all relatively dire.
Things That Make Me Go Ugh
Lots of items in the news have made me groan (or worse) outloud recently.
- Rush Limbaugh: I don't think I need to do more than quote him to get my point across here: "What does it say about the college coed Susan Fluke who goes before a congressional committee and essentially says that she must be paid to have sex, what does that make her? It makes her a slut, right? It makes her a prostitute. She wants to be paid to have sex. She’s having so much sex she can’t afford the contraception. She wants you and me and the taxpayers to pay her to have sex. What does that make us? We’re the pimps. The johns. . . . So Miss Fluke, and the rest of you Feminazis, here’s the deal. If we are going to pay for your contraceptives, and thus pay for you to have sex. We want something for it. We want you post the videos online so we can all watch." (source here) I've decided that the GOP obsession with contraception is actually not a distraction from their lack of workable economic policy but is their economic policy (well, besides protecting the boardroom; see here for great post on private vs. public morality): if more women are pregnant and have children and leave the work force (because of lack of national healthcare, maternity leave, and/or childcare, which is why these aren't on the GOP platform), more unemployed white men can have jobs, thereby improving the economy.
- Catholic Church: Dictating politics to the nation, the Pope has stressed that clergy should increase their opposition to same-sex marriage. Similarly, the bishops, one of whom has recently be arrested for pedophilia, in this country aren't going to "be altar boys" anymore and are attacking SNAP, the organization supporting survivors of clerical childhood sexual abuse, in a last-ditch effort to avoid legal consequences. Finally, as you know, bishops have made great waves against contraception and supported the Blunt amendment to resist supporting women's control over their own bodies. Aren't these celibate priests just a little too obsessed with sex, marriage, and women's bodies?
- GOP Primaries: I don't even know where to start here. Santorum wanting to vomit over the idea of the separation of church and state? Romney's tepid response to Limbaugh's slut rant? Support of the personhood movement and the Blunt amendment? See Dowd or Collins for hilarious takes on these and more . . . particularly Seamus the dog.
I think the only saving grace of these frightening insanities is that I truly believe these are the last gasps of a dying power: middle-aged, white Christian men of a conservative ilk, and the women who draw their identities, status, and power from them, who realize that they are no longer in control--with a black president in the White House, a female Secretary of State, liberal female Supreme Court Justices, decreasing church membership,and the increased acceptance of same-sex marriage in several states and political polls, not to mention the increasing racial, religious, sexual/gender-identity, and ethnic diversity of the nation. (I should in the interest of balance, point out that this is not all men, whites, Christians, or conservatives.) Why else would they contort themselves into such paroxysms of hate and oppression (see here and here for more lucid discussions of this idea)? They're like preschoolers who don't get their way, who aren't in charge, and throw themselves on the ground kicking and screeching their ridiculous demands. Except what they aren't fully in charge of any more is women's bodies, civil rights, the definition of morality, the country. That's a lot to lose.
Of course, with hysterical preschoolers, it's best to ignore the tantrum until they calm down. But we can't just let these men scream and control everything until they figure out they are no longer in charge (because they won't). It's our responsibility to put them in time out and contain their damage . . . because trying to reason with them just doesn't work.
Whew, needed to rant incoherently myself just then before the incredulity and anger became overwhelming (so, in that way, I guess I actually understand the far right!).
Broccoli Llama
I can't get enough of Bud's new hand song (you know, nonsense rhymes with hand movements) about llamas. This one starts with "happy llama, sad llama" and a hand sign like "hook'em horns" but the "ears" go down on "sad." And it keeps going . . . . He's only done it for me once, being to shy afterwards when I wanted to see it again. Luckily, I got it on video the first time (but have promised to never show anyone ever. Right.)! It just makes me smile. Teasing him about it, by doing the llama sign, makes me smile too, especially as he objects, "You are SO annoying!" he squeals, loving the attention (because if there is anything that boy loves, it's an audience.) Sis doesn't know the rhyme as well and doesn't get as worked up when I mention it; and she just smiles when he gets embarrassed. It's hilarious.
Even more funny, there is a line in the rhyme that I thought mentioned "broccoli llama," which doesn't make any kind of sense. Well, little of it makes sense. But Urban Dictionary clears up that confusion: it's Barack "Ollama!" Must be a new one (the llama subject reminds me of those recent kids' books by Anna Dewdney like Llama, Llama Red Pajama, and Llama, Llama Mad at Mama, etc.). Bud's version is different than the one in Urban Dictionary because it omits the Dalai "Llama" (meditation fingers!) part and ends with a whole "moose-alpaca-moose-moose-alpaca-goat" section.
Perhaps you have to see it to appreciate it.
-=-=-=-=-=-
Llama Song, Bud's version
(make a llama head with your pointer finger and pinkie, like "Hook'em Horns")
happy llama (regular llama, see above)
sad llama (droop "ear" fingers)
totally rad llama (make a llama and wave it like a lasso by your head)
super llama (hand signs are unclear here)
drama llama
big fat mama llama (put hands beside each other and put up the outer finger on each hand)
baby llama (llama kissing your cheeks)
crazy llama (circular motions with both llamas each side of your head)
don't forget barack ollama (unclear hand signs here)
fish, fish (put both hands out in front, palms down)
more (roll hands over eachother)
fish (hand out in front again)
turtle (make turtle, one hand on top of the other)
UH (bring turtle towards your chest)
unicorn (bring both hands up to your forehead)
peacock (fan arms out to either side, kinda like a peacock tail)
moose (spread-finger hands beside head)
alpaca (hang-ten hands beside head)
moose, moose, alpaca (repeat above_
goat (use two hands to make beard at chin)
moose, alpaca, moose, moose, alpaca, goat! (repeat signs)
Even more funny, there is a line in the rhyme that I thought mentioned "broccoli llama," which doesn't make any kind of sense. Well, little of it makes sense. But Urban Dictionary clears up that confusion: it's Barack "Ollama!" Must be a new one (the llama subject reminds me of those recent kids' books by Anna Dewdney like Llama, Llama Red Pajama, and Llama, Llama Mad at Mama, etc.). Bud's version is different than the one in Urban Dictionary because it omits the Dalai "Llama" (meditation fingers!) part and ends with a whole "moose-alpaca-moose-moose-alpaca-goat" section.
Perhaps you have to see it to appreciate it.
-=-=-=-=-=-
Llama Song, Bud's version
(make a llama head with your pointer finger and pinkie, like "Hook'em Horns")
happy llama (regular llama, see above)
sad llama (droop "ear" fingers)
totally rad llama (make a llama and wave it like a lasso by your head)
super llama (hand signs are unclear here)
drama llama
big fat mama llama (put hands beside each other and put up the outer finger on each hand)
baby llama (llama kissing your cheeks)
crazy llama (circular motions with both llamas each side of your head)
don't forget barack ollama (unclear hand signs here)
fish, fish (put both hands out in front, palms down)
more (roll hands over eachother)
fish (hand out in front again)
turtle (make turtle, one hand on top of the other)
UH (bring turtle towards your chest)
unicorn (bring both hands up to your forehead)
peacock (fan arms out to either side, kinda like a peacock tail)
moose (spread-finger hands beside head)
alpaca (hang-ten hands beside head)
moose, moose, alpaca (repeat above_
goat (use two hands to make beard at chin)
moose, alpaca, moose, moose, alpaca, goat! (repeat signs)
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Monday, March 12, 2012
Happy 100th Birthday, Girl Scouts!
It's the Girl Scout Jubilee, the anniversary of the founding of the now-largest organization for girls by Juliette Gordon Low!
Interestingly, I vividly remember getting in trouble during a third-grade math lesson for reading a biography of Juliette Gordon Low that I'd just gotten during library time! (Honestly, I think it was the only time I got called out by name in class in school ever. It was a great series of biographies, particularly of childhood, of Americans, in the early 1970s, with the long lists of people in both front and back flyleafs; I read all the ones on women--Dorothea Dix, Juliette Gordon Low, Julia Ward Howe, Mary Todd Lincoln, Louisa May Alcott, even Sacagawea, albeit a Native American, etc etc. Possibly Childhood of Famous Americans series (here and here).).
As you know, I was a Girl Scout for years, from Brownie through Senior, plus camp counseling at Girl Scout camp Mira Sol for children with special needs outside of San Antonio, and am so grateful for my experiences. I loved earning badges, going to swap meets and other programs, and selling cookies (back when they were 75 cents a box . . . and I still only ever sold about 75, compared to Sis's 300+), only stopping when my troop dissolved (not knowing anything about Gold Star or other programs). But camp had to be, by far, my favorite Girl Scout activity. I started at day camp and then moved to my first, two-night, sleepover camp at Camp Robinwood outside of Houston. Singing, s'mores, crafts, swimming. I loved it. Later, I went to week-long camps at Camp Agnes Arnold and Camp Casa Mare, where we did outdoor experiments, canoeing, theater arts, and all manner of wonderful things. I loved packing for camp, then setting up my cot with mosquito netting and sleeping bag (usually my blue, Holly Hobbie-esque Joan Walsh Anglund one), getting mail from Gommie (who always packed one and left one with the counselors so I always had mail), going to the camp store for t-shirts and pillowcases, making friends with my bunkmates, having crushes on the counselors (most memorably, Jo, at Casa Mare. I should have known. And now I can read about other lesbian scout experiences in On My Honor: Lesbians Reflect on Their Scouting Experience by Nancy Manahan). That doesn't begin to touch on the arts (tie-dye, wax candles, telephone wire jewlery), the songs (oh, my favorite part was signing around the campfire and I remember them all!), the food (campfire cooking, plus I even liked the cafeteria food!). Being a counselor, for three or four summers at Mira Sol (I was also a counselor at a Boy Scout camp and also at a YMCA day camp, both for special needs), was just wonderful, really an extension of my own camping, because we mentored in pairs or small groups and did all the activities with our campers (who were only a few years younger than I was in early adolescence), and then got to socialize with other counselors during afternoon rest and at night. Even when we were flooded and had to evacuate as the Guadalupe River rose, it was great and thrilling. I wish I could go back to camp now.
And so I am now a leader for Sis's Daisy troop (they didn't have Daisies way back when), just like Gommie was for me for a few years (for my thoughts on Boy Scouts, see here and here. Briefly, homophobic, theocratic Boy Scouts stink.) We've done arts and crafts, singing, field trips, community service, and explorations of different activities, like yoga and (soon) letterboxing and horseback riding, plus, of course, cookie sales. Sis has even gone to day camp and will go again this summer. I can't wait to continue Scouting with her and hope she stays in it for years, as long as it is a rewarding and interesting experience for her (and not just because I love it, though it will be bittersweet if she wants to stop before I do!).
So, happy birthday, Girl Scouts and thanks for the memories in the past and the ones Sis and I are making now!
-=-=-=-=-=-
(Support your local Girl Scouts by buying cookies--send a message to Rep. Bob Morris of Indiana, and other hardcore Republicans, who have an untrue, even creepy view that Girl Scouts promote the sexualization and lesbianism of girls and are a gateway to Planned Parenthood. Seriously? What is it with Republicans and their obsession with sex? Like Rush Limbaugh wanting to watch?? Ugh. But more on that another time.)
Another One
And now Bud is heading home from school, by way of the pediatrician, with a stomachache, which he's had off and on for a few days.
When it rains, it pours.
When it rains, it pours.
The Accidental Alien-Astronaut Tourist
I've found the perfect tv show to watch while I'm curled up in bed with this cold/sinus infection (for which I just got antibiotics this morning): "Ancient Aliens."
Yep, you read that correctly: "Ancient Aliens."
It's a show on H2 (History Channel 2) that explores the ideas of "Alien Astronaut Theorists." Like Chariots of the Gods author Erich von Daniken. They believe that extra-terrestrials have visited Earth in the remote past as well as in the more recent past (and present) and have had notable impact on such things as architecture (particularly tools and techniques, as well as types--you know, for landing strips!), weather (earthquakes, floods, hurricanes were caused by aliens), religion (West African Dogons, Australian aborigines), and genetics (in that they have interbred, evidenced by long-skulled skeletons. Oh, before humans, they interbred with reptiles and created Reptilians). Evidence--in the realm of unexplainable architecture, ancient art, and ancient texts--abounds for them, especially because they take everything so literally: a sculpture of a fantastic lizard means that lizard was real, probably the result of reptile-alien breeding; pictographs of large-eyed figures must mean large-eyed figures, i.e. Gray aliens, lived on earth; rows of boulders visible from the air, such as at Carnac in Brittany, must have been made to be visible from the air, for spaceships; descriptions in the Bible and Vedic texts are all real and not metaphorical, including Ezekial's spaceship-wheel, the "manna machine" from aliens in the desert for 40 years, and the flying Vimanas with mercury. Of course, you've never heard so many maybe-probably-potentially qualifiers and "if-then" subjunctives used in one sentence! And those by investigative journalists and author/publishers of various books and magazines like Legendary Times and The Ancient Alien Question , who believe traditional archaeologists, the government, NASA, Freemasons, and schools don't comprehend or cover up the truth.
How could that not be fun?
These shows have come a long way from the books and shows I was obsessed with in the early 1980s, which were all ESP, Freemasons, Bigfoot, Roswell, Machu Picchu, Nazca lines, Stonehenge, and the pyramids. I followed those with glee and interest, appreciating the non-traditional theories and idea that "the truth is out there." Now there are more remote and less familiar sites--Gobekli Tepe in Turkey and Puma Punku in Bolivia and Carahunge in Armenia, to name a few--and a more coherent theory encompassing it all, namely "alien astronauts." Of course, as much as I enjoy the theories and armchair sightseeing, I don't really believe these ideas. Are there aliens somewhere? Probably. Have they been here? I doubt it--I tend to think if they'd been here, they'd have taken over (and the theorists never convincingly explain "why," even if they have "what" down pat.) Are art and texts proof? I tend to read art and texts much more metaphorically and imaginatively and would be very cautious about reading them as "real" or "true" (a la Da Vinci Code author Dan Brown claiming all descriptions of art in his book are "true." It might be his true reading but belief in something, however strongly held, doesn't make it true or real.) How did they make those buildings? I think we often underestimate the accomplishments of our ancestors, having lost their skills and believing so whole-heartedly in our own superiority to all previous times, and don't need aliens to explain their achievements. That said, I know there are things in history and science that we can't explain, might never understand. I just don't think we need to say aliens are the answer.
So, why? Why "alien astronauts"? Is this an outgrowth of fifty years of Star Trek, Star Wars, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, E.T., "The X-Files," and the like? Is this an attempt for otherwise secular people to have something to believe in that is bigger than themselves? Or to have an explanation, any explanation, for Mystery? Is it coincidence that the experts are all middle-aged white men? Is this just the folklore of our era, instead of wicked stepmothers or rogue cowboys? An expression of distrust of government and institutions?
It's great brain candy for a sick day, regardless.
Yep, you read that correctly: "Ancient Aliens."
It's a show on H2 (History Channel 2) that explores the ideas of "Alien Astronaut Theorists." Like Chariots of the Gods author Erich von Daniken. They believe that extra-terrestrials have visited Earth in the remote past as well as in the more recent past (and present) and have had notable impact on such things as architecture (particularly tools and techniques, as well as types--you know, for landing strips!), weather (earthquakes, floods, hurricanes were caused by aliens), religion (West African Dogons, Australian aborigines), and genetics (in that they have interbred, evidenced by long-skulled skeletons. Oh, before humans, they interbred with reptiles and created Reptilians). Evidence--in the realm of unexplainable architecture, ancient art, and ancient texts--abounds for them, especially because they take everything so literally: a sculpture of a fantastic lizard means that lizard was real, probably the result of reptile-alien breeding; pictographs of large-eyed figures must mean large-eyed figures, i.e. Gray aliens, lived on earth; rows of boulders visible from the air, such as at Carnac in Brittany, must have been made to be visible from the air, for spaceships; descriptions in the Bible and Vedic texts are all real and not metaphorical, including Ezekial's spaceship-wheel, the "manna machine" from aliens in the desert for 40 years, and the flying Vimanas with mercury. Of course, you've never heard so many maybe-probably-potentially qualifiers and "if-then" subjunctives used in one sentence! And those by investigative journalists and author/publishers of various books and magazines like Legendary Times and The Ancient Alien Question , who believe traditional archaeologists, the government, NASA, Freemasons, and schools don't comprehend or cover up the truth.
How could that not be fun?
These shows have come a long way from the books and shows I was obsessed with in the early 1980s, which were all ESP, Freemasons, Bigfoot, Roswell, Machu Picchu, Nazca lines, Stonehenge, and the pyramids. I followed those with glee and interest, appreciating the non-traditional theories and idea that "the truth is out there." Now there are more remote and less familiar sites--Gobekli Tepe in Turkey and Puma Punku in Bolivia and Carahunge in Armenia, to name a few--and a more coherent theory encompassing it all, namely "alien astronauts." Of course, as much as I enjoy the theories and armchair sightseeing, I don't really believe these ideas. Are there aliens somewhere? Probably. Have they been here? I doubt it--I tend to think if they'd been here, they'd have taken over (and the theorists never convincingly explain "why," even if they have "what" down pat.) Are art and texts proof? I tend to read art and texts much more metaphorically and imaginatively and would be very cautious about reading them as "real" or "true" (a la Da Vinci Code author Dan Brown claiming all descriptions of art in his book are "true." It might be his true reading but belief in something, however strongly held, doesn't make it true or real.) How did they make those buildings? I think we often underestimate the accomplishments of our ancestors, having lost their skills and believing so whole-heartedly in our own superiority to all previous times, and don't need aliens to explain their achievements. That said, I know there are things in history and science that we can't explain, might never understand. I just don't think we need to say aliens are the answer.
So, why? Why "alien astronauts"? Is this an outgrowth of fifty years of Star Trek, Star Wars, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, E.T., "The X-Files," and the like? Is this an attempt for otherwise secular people to have something to believe in that is bigger than themselves? Or to have an explanation, any explanation, for Mystery? Is it coincidence that the experts are all middle-aged white men? Is this just the folklore of our era, instead of wicked stepmothers or rogue cowboys? An expression of distrust of government and institutions?
It's great brain candy for a sick day, regardless.
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Friday, March 9, 2012
SuperBetter is Live!
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Shadow Dancers
Anyone watching Bud and I yesterday morning would have thought we were odd as we stood in the yard flapping our arms, shaking our heads, even standing on our heads (of course, him and not me). But we had noticed what strong sunlight was lighting up our yard and decided to make a human shadow puppet. We did a three-headed creature, with my elbow as the third bobbing head; an octopus with eight arms; a multi-armed dancing Hindu god or goddess (there are several, but I'm thinking of Shiva from this sculpture in Chicago); and other wacky indescribables. Mama even joined us for a last, fabulous multi-headed, multi-armed figure before the bus stopped in front of the house.
We were looking at the daffodil and only managed one figure this morning in the watery light . . . .
We were looking at the daffodil and only managed one figure this morning in the watery light . . . .
Bloomin' Bet
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Joke of the Day
Humor was our theme for today (actually, for several days now)--knock-knocks, riddles, silly jokes--I told several to Sis every time she took a sip as an incentive. It especially worked when I found a page of bunny jokes! There were also dinosaur jokes and food jokes and lots of knock-knock jokes. So Bud was in on the joke, too, I put one in his lunch and folded it so he didn't accidentally read the punchline first. He loved it! It certainly does help to inject some humor into difficult days--I'll need it again tomorrow, too, as Sis isn't well enough to go to school yet (the medicine for her sinus infection, leftover from her cold three weeks ago, is making her nauseous and might need to be switched) and bud misses her in their class.
So, please send your favorite joke (one that I can share with the kids!) . . .
So, please send your favorite joke (one that I can share with the kids!) . . .
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Us, Too
My friend Shelley has had sick children off and on for the last month. Now it's our turn: Sis has a fever and will be home today and, at least, tomorrow.
Monday, March 5, 2012
My Next Epic Win
I haven't posted about Super Better much recently, both because my usage of it waned a bit after Christmas and because they are revamping the site and will introduce a new one soon. Until then, I want to do a little Super Better bit here, because I have a new "Epic Win": in a month or so, I'm going to a formal meditation class! I'm very excited but also a bit nervous. That's where Super Better comes in.
Epic Win: Meditation class (1/2 day)
Allies: Mama Hungry; family and friends; my faithful blog readers; my physical therapist; my minister; Toni Bernhard (author of How to Be Sick); the staff and teacher at the class
Bad Guys: anxiety; fatigue; ruminating; discomfort; isolation; unfamiliarity
Quests (in preparation for the Epic Win):
Epic Win: Meditation class (1/2 day)
Allies: Mama Hungry; family and friends; my faithful blog readers; my physical therapist; my minister; Toni Bernhard (author of How to Be Sick); the staff and teacher at the class
Bad Guys: anxiety; fatigue; ruminating; discomfort; isolation; unfamiliarity
Quests (in preparation for the Epic Win):
- walk on the treadmill 45 minutes everyday
- do my PT stretches and exercises everyday
- meditate everyday
- work on getting up and down off the floor with PT, if she says ok (I can't do this at all right now)
Power-Ups (pick-me-ups):
- "Born this Way" and other songs on my hits list
- socializing with friends
- blogging
- reading
- eating dinner with the family
- sitting up
- going to church
- walking on my treadmill
Power Boosts (smaller accomplishments to look forward to before then):
- Spring!
- our now-weekly Whole Foods trips
- finishing the cookbook and docent training
Hero Status: Super Mommy Hungry!
Another Great List
If you liked my personal list of resources for meditation, check out Mindful.org's list of mindfulness books. I'm putting Wild Chickens and Petty Tyrants: 108 Metaphors for Mindfulness and One-Minute Mindfulness at the top of my list.
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