This Present History or Koran

Peace People,

I was building with this dude who came into the office today. He and I have history. Not romantic, but platonic. Last year he was a vegetarian for 3 months. You have to start somewhere. But he is a single man and it was hard for him to maintain, being a single and working all the time. Now he is back on his meat grind complete with the swine. He asked me how I managed to maintain so long and I had to laugh. If all I was a vegetarian then maybe I could see me having difficulty. I thought I should blog about it.

But then... Which blog to post it? The healthy blog? The righteous blog? The sewing blog? The socially responsible blog? All my blogs have different readers. So..... I'll hit y'all all up!

This is Serenity.... At this present history or Koran.

(1) I am a decade long vegetarian. I go in and out with veganism and raw food. I really don't think for me raw food is sustainable for long term consumption. I think it's better in the summer months than in the cooler ones. For one reason, I can't eat cold food in cold weather and vice versa. The way around that is in heated environments. I think I would like to be more raw and vegan, but cheese is a tricky dicky temptation. We shall see

(2) I don't wear pants. I stopped wearing pants 5 years ago. I felt like my feminine energy was being suppressed. I force myself to be more lady like by wearing skirts and dresses. And by George, it works. I am very lady like now. It has affected the way I walk and sit. That has in turn affected my mannerisms which in turn has affected my speech

(3) I rarely buy clothes new. I completed a year-long shopping fast, now I turn to the thrift store or better yet, my sewing machine for new clothes needs.

(4) I don't take medicine unless I see no other way, like I'd die without it. that extends to most vitamins. I rather get the nutrients through food or teas.

(5) I do most of my shopping for food at health food stores, farmers markets and specialty stores. Other stuff I need, I get from cheapo stores like Big lot or Maxway

(6) I recycle, re-use, and repurpose. So that means I don't buy plastic that I cannot reuse over and over and over and over.... I'm trying to do my part to save the planet. Not because I think the planet is incapable of saving herself, but people need to live in harmony with their surroundings and acknowledge that we have a responsibility to be good stewards of nature.

(7) I like to ball and have a balling cee on things. I can be that fabulous fly assed hippy Earth.

(8) No children. And I'm okay with that. If they come fine, if they don't that's fine too.

(9) I do yoga. Not as much as I'd like to because it's cold and I hate leaving the house when it's cold, but I'm going to get back there.

(10) I try not to wear anything but natural fibers. Everything else irritates my eczema. Unfortunately I have never seen a cotton bra. And I draw the line at making or thrifting lingerie. That gets store bought.

(11) I study all forms of spirituality. I really have a true affection for Hoodoo/Rootwork/Conjure. Since I'm righteous and don't fear retribution of a mystery god, I will do stuff just for fun. It's a hobby, I have been at if for years, months and days. You scared?

(12) My hair is loced. It took a minute for me to like it , but now I'm hooked and recommend it. Since I always wear a headwrap, I don't style it. I still love it though

(13) I really go all out with the 3/4ths thing. I rarely leave the house with out my head wrapped. If I do, it's by accident. Some chicks have asked to see my hair..... Why? Doesn't matter to me if your righteous or not, if your male or female.... I just don't show it. Eventually, my hair might be too long to keep from being wrapped fully. Wait on that day.

(14) I have a real bad temper. The dangerous part in that, is people think I'm a punk bitch. SMH. They usually try me and get more than they bargained for. I have no boundaries when fighting. I have been trying to reign it in since my father died. Daddy would never leave his baby girl to rot in jail. My mother, on the other hand, would.

(15) I used to smoke and drink. Not anymore. I stopped smoking because my father died from lung cancer. I stopped drinking because I didn't want to be drunk again. And I don't see the purpose of drinking if your not going to get your head smashed.

(16) I really get annoyed with people who say "I could be a vegetarian" or "I could be righteous." If you could be, and don't, clearly you can't. Stop claiming it.

(17) I'm a big girl and I'm not ashamed or apologetic. I'm big, Yes. But I bet I look better than the average thin chick on ANY given day.

(18) I suppose I'm conceited too. I don't care.

(19) I got this thing for vintage. Vintage clothes. Vintage recipes. Vintage activities. i have NO idea where this interest comes from and I'm just as shocked as folks around me.

(20) I won't buy a foreign car. New or old. I just can't bring myself to do it. I have had 4 cars in my adult life (1 in my adolescent life) and all of them were American made cars. It's just how I get down. And I have never had the drama folks put on American cars. Ain't like people who drive foreign cars never have problems with them. You have to car for them properly.

(21) I love my Nation so much! But I'm not a revolutionary. My cee on this Nation is it's a personal journey for each individual. I don't have to put myself out there and force folks to my side of the street. But I allow myself to be just visible enough for people to build with me if they choose. But I ain't running out to save the world.


I am a completely different person than I was 10 years ago. I expect to be a completely different person in 10 years so I'll be in the constant state of build and destroy. I'm actually looking forward to the new developments.



Peace

Leftover Cranberry Sauce

Peace.

Thanksgiving just passed. I made cranberry sauce, because you know that canned stuff has swine in it. But what do you do with all the leftover cranberry sauce? You make salad dressing!

(1) Pour some sauce in the blender
(2) Add a bit of olive oil
(3) Add a bit of acv
(4) Add a sprinkle of cayenne. You don't have to add this. I like cayenne....
BOOM!!!!!
Salad dressing.

Enjoy!

Now lets see what else is in there for dressing?



Peace

They Got Me

I got got. About 8 years ago. I fell victim to all the hype around how nasty produce is with dirt and pesticides. I mean who doesn't wash produce before they cook or eat it first? Now I must say, if I'm berry picking, I will eat the hell out of the berries right off the bushes. But grocery store produce must be washed before preparation.

What I did was purchase a $4 spray bottle of produce wash. Yeah, it cost a grip for what it was. Do you know what the main ingredient is? Vinegar! It wasn't even a gallon. Maybe a pint. A gallon of vinegar doesn't cost $4. Yeah they got me.

Well no more. I look at that $4 wash as the price I paid for the container. I still use it, but I refill it with white vinegar when it runs low.

That was $4 and a lesson well learned. Read the damn labels!



Peace

Napkins

Peace Family.

I hope your holiday weekend is everything you wanted it to be and more.

I was in the thrift store with my mother, sharing a surprising bit of social equality. I wanted to purchase a tablecloth for my kitchen table. I knew she would be invested in it because that same table had belonged to her mother. Anything I did to improve or preserve it would be supremely welcome by my mother. So we found a winter tablecloth and some place mats. In the place mat section there were some cute cloth napkins. But they didn't match the ensemble so I passed. It got me to thinking about how I wanted to share this build.

Paper towels and paper napkins are a ridiculous waste of money. Seriously. I stopped using them years ago. For counter cleaning, I use a tea cloth. For eating I have cloth napkins. This way trees are not dying all willy nilly on my behalf. And they are not expensive either. I mean they pay for themselves with use. You can find them at any linen store or department store. Even Ikea carries napkins. B.U.T. if you want to recycle and save even more of your hard earned gold, then buy them at a thrift store.

I once bought 6 heavy white linen decorative napkins for 99 cents and the tag was a 50% off tag. Those are my fancy napkins. I have some that I monogrammed, and then the ones I use every day. I also have some beige ones. Those are the only ones I ever bought brand new. They will eventually become daily used napkins. When the ones I have wear down.

So give it some thought and definitely give it a try.



Peace

It's So Hard!

Teehee @ my title.....

Peace Family.

My goal with this blog was to make knowledge born about living a frugal yet fabulous eco-friendly life. And I don't think I have failed in what I have posted thus far. but it's hard to come up with new topics. let me tell you why....

Most blogs similar to mine are authored by the devil. The devil has never been know to be super duper in tune with the planet. It's not there and they have already expired (35,36:40). So for them all this stuff is new. Not so for us. We have always existed (9:10). The planet exists for us to use (3:14). But some of us have adopted their ways and actions (8,10,12:36) Most of the tips I come into contact with are for them and not for us.

So I will continue to labor, but don't be cross with me if the posts are few and far between. I am still tempted to make some home made washing powder.



Peace

PS: I'll take your tips too.... SLSPEarth@gmail.com

Mustard.

Guess what I made? Yellow mustard! And it was damn easy. I love the internet!

Equal amounts of Farmers Market mustard powder for $.56 and vinegar and that's it. You can use water instead of vinegar, but I didn't like it that way.

I would not suggest you just sprinkle powder on food. It has an odd flavor by itself.

It's a little rough and runny on day 1, but day 5 it's is recognizable. The flavor keeps building.

Why pay $.89 for a big container of mustard that you have no idea what's in it or how it's made? When you can have the fresh homemade goodness?



Peace

Green Powder

Peace Y'all,

I almost forgot to post this. Then some one walked in my office and reminded me. So here you go!

Are you familiar with green powder? If not look at the above pic. It is a highly concentrated green powder made from... well.... green leaf veggies. The premise is that during our busy days we will not be able to eat all the greens that our bodies need. You know the same premise of V8 juice. But unlike V8, this powder is hella high.

I have acquired this powder only twice before. Once when I was balling out of control and another time some one gifted me with a whole jar. The reason why I don't always keep some on hand is because it's truly expensive. Depending on the brand and size, it can cost between $18-$40. I just can't bare paying that for green powder.

Although, I'm cheap, I do endorse it's use. Leafy greens are good for vegetarians and especially good for vegans. They contain a ridiculous amount of calcium and iron. Folks like to think the only place you can get calcium is dairy and iron from meat. Not true. But who is gonna cook and clean that stuff everyday and/or eat enough salads every day.

You can sprinkle this stuff on your food, in your beverages or in a smoothie. I promise you, It does not affect the flavor. And, if you mix it in orange juice or other citrus beverage, one teaspoon will release enough iron to constipate your stool into small black rocks! Teehee. Just playing... but not really.

But again, I ain't buying the premade stuff. It might be good, but I ain't no Kardashian with money to spend on foolishness. To me it's more of a luxury than a necessity. I was reading one of the hundreds of blogs I follow and the author had a bumper crop of Swiss chard that s/he didn't know what to do with. So they decided to dehydrate them and then grind them up in the blender. I have a dehydrator. I have a blender too. Hmmm....

I obtained some organic kale. I don't trust organic, but that's another blog. It was on sale. I had some dandelion leaves in the fridge. and some other green stuff about to go in the trash. Not that it was bad or slimy. It just wasn't pristine and pretty. I pulled the stems off as per the blog suggestion and put them in the dehydrator for 2 days. That was out of pure laziness. When I make kale chips I just put them in there for a few hours and then I tear into them. 2 days was over kill. But I wanted to be honest.

I tried to force all of it in the blender, but the blender only blended what was near the blades. My blender has shown and proven that it will kill anything I put near it so... I took it all out and blended it up in increments. It came out well broken down but it wasn't as fine as the pre-jarred powder. It looked like oregano or basil. I'm thinking about putting it in the coffee grinder and seeing if I can get it finer.

Anywho... 2 bunches of kale and the extras made a cup of powder. I'd say a cup of power is maybe $15-20. Mine cost roughly $2. And this way I get to control what's in there. I'm satisfied.



Peace

See What had happened was....

Peace!

I wanted spaghetti! The God makes a great sauce. This used to be the only recipe he could make. He's doing much better now, since I'm forcing him to be more involved in cooking. He even learned to boil the pasta... No judgments. But God does keep the actual way he makes it a secret. All I know is that he uses this 7th Day Adventist vegetarian canned meat, canned sauce, and Parmesan cheese. There's more to it, but I haven't figured it out yet. The man can have his secrets.

Anywho... We were out of sauce. Somehow that is my responsibility to keep up with all this food he eats. Yes, he has a car and lots of money. He was getting all mad with me because he was hungry and now we couldn't eat. Well The Earth has to rotate on her own axis does she not? I went into the cabinets, found 2 cans of diced tomatoes and made my own sauce. Let me tell you something. That joker was good. Guess what? I ain't buying sauce any more. Next summer when folks are loaded down with tomatoes they don't want, I'm going to town with my canning.

I will do what the God won't... I will share the recipe....
2 cans of 14 oz tomatoes.
1/2 regular sized onion
a few cloves of garlic
olive oil
seasonings to taste (I used, salt, pepper, cayenne, basil, oregano, and a tiny bit of sugar)

Saute the onions in olive oil until soft.
Add 1 can of the tomatoes (if its in tomato sauce don't drain, if not drain before adding)
blend in food processor or blender until smooth
put back in pan on low heat
Add the other can of tomatoes (I like mine chunky)
Season

That's it

Enjoy!


Peace

What do you clean with?

Peace,

I probably posted about this before but, I feel like coming back to it...

What do you clean with?

For me, 90% of the time, I use ammonia. It's wonderful. You can clean several surfaces with it... bathroom, kitchen, glass. The smell is a plus too. Not just for the contact high, but because that strong odor cleans the air.

I one had a fungus on the two trees that sandwich my front door. The smell was ridiculous. Further I didn't know how to correct the smell. I had already removed the trees and treated them, but the smell was still there. An older lady told me to use 2 bowls of ammonia. Just pour it and leave it there. what was there to lose? I did it. And yes, I had to leave the hall alone for a few hours but the smell was gone. Know what else? I could still use the ammonia in those bowls for cleaning purposes.

Ammonia is natural. It comes from plants. Also, its cheap. Why wouldn't we all use it.
When you look under my sink you see a gallon of ammonia, Murphy's oil soap and bathroom foaming cleaner. I don't use a different cleaner for every job. I can use ammonia to wash dishes to. It's just that soapy and cuts grease.

Alright that's me. What are y'all using?



Peace

Dressing Green

Apparently I'm on a roll today. Enjoy it while you can.

I was reading a blog by a fellow raw foodist. (I'm a raw foodist for a now) And she was saying that she bought some clothes that were made of hemp and that she felt wonderful and was never going to wear non-green clothes again. That got me to thinking.

Years ago, I made the conscious (pun intended) decision to stop wearing synthetic fibers. I slowly converted my wardrobe to all cot ten, rayon, silk or anything natural. I would wear hemp, but I work a square job. I'm already partially hippie, I ain't trying to become a full fledged homeless hippie. I was curious to what she wears regularly.

I stopped wearing synthetic fibers years ago because they screw with my skin. My skin can't breath like it needs too. Also I noticed the cleaner my diet was, the less tolerant I am to synthetic fibers. So why not just give them the boot? My wardrobe is now about 90% natural. Bras are made with polyester; and I can't go bra less. Ain't that much of a hippie.

I'm a big thrift store shopper, too. I learned years ago that folks think me affluent. So I can wear knock offs and people will think they are legit. In the end isn't the goal you being cool with it and folks not aggravating you?

Then I make about 1/2 my clothes. This is how I get to be so picky about what they are made of. I think my closet is very environmentally conscious.

So what do y'all do? Do you give thought to the chemical composition of the garments that adorn your back?



Peace

Toilet Paper?

know I said I was gonna do better with this blog, And this is me doing better. I can't always think of more ways to be crunchy. And the people in my cipher are so clueless, just to get them to do the basics is hard. So I post when something hits me. Today something did.

I saw an add for recycled toilet paper. That's nasty. Do the manufactures know where toilet paper goes? Do we know where the paper is coming from? I assume it's not other toilet paper because other toilet paper gets destroyed through the flushing process. I know I advocate greeness but I cannot say that I start wiping with used toilet paper. I use single ply. It's cheaper and uses less paper.

I think of my parents' stories of using an outhouse and wiping their asses with pieces of the Sears-Roebuck catalog. Toilet paper in the 40's was a luxury. SMH. But at least they were recycling and reusing. I wonder what happened when they ran out of catalogs?

Are y'all willing to use used toilet paper to save the environment?


Peace

Going A'Thrifting

Peace Y'all.

Thrift stores, second hand stores, consignment shops... They all used to places where I could find a deal. Deals on clothing, shoes, boots, home goods, furniture, etc. I have never been ashamed of my hobby.

But now a days.... I hate to say this.... there is nothing but junk in the thrift stores. I have had the privilege of finding designer bags, furs and clothing in these stores. But not of late. I suppose this economy has hit all of us hard enough to make folks reconsider the malls. And I suppose I should be happy that people are choosing a more environmental option to new purchases. But it's messing with my ability to plump my closet with flyness....

****Sigh****

I suppose I'll live



Peace

Long Over Due Update.....

Peace Y'all,

I know it has been a minute since I have gotten back here. I'm not sure I have Built here this year! I have 2 readers and I feel responsible to post something at least a little regularly. I'm a do better....

That being said....

This economy sucks! They say it is rebounding but I see no evidence of it. Maybe they are trickling down. But they haven't gotten to where I am yet. And that trickle down theory is old bull. Showering the top of the food chain will have little to no effect on the people at the bottom. And we have to wait for some nasty, used foolishness to get to us when they damn well feel like it.

So what am I doing now a days to maintain my cipher and help my own personal economy? I have been bringing my lunch to work. That may seem like a no brainer, but think about it.... How many people do you know who consistently bring their lunch to work rather than eating out locally? I don't know very many people who do that. When I'm riding mass transit, I don't see as many lunch bags as I don't see. It's not even 50/50. More like 65/35 Not bringing to bringing. So folks are either not eating or they are buying their lunches.

Now I ain't one to tell folks what to do with their money, because I don't want anyone telling me what to do with mine. But bringing my lunch has considerably helped me out. It forces me to cook. If I cook, that means I'm probably not eating dinner out. The preparing of my lunch in the morning, has me eating while I do it so now I have breakfast. And I don't need to buy the little snack I allow myself.

You know what sparked this change? The cafeteria at my job. They did not raise their prices. The decreased their portions. I am NOT paying the same price for 1/2 the amount of fries. So I'm boycotting their facility or purchasing things they couldn't change. Like a veggie burger or an egg. But a veggie burger is not good without the fries so that squashed that.

I really notice the savings too. I don't drive my car much. I take mass transit, so I'm saving on gas. I refuse to purchase garbage bags. Why buy something that you are pay to through out? I am going through my stash of grocery bags quickly. I ain't scared. Whenever I need more bags I ask for plastic instead of paper, or leave my reusable bag in the car. I am still making all my own condiments and blending a lot of my own skin products. This may sound crazy, but just from those few changes, I feel healthier. I am kind of avoiding grocery stores in favor of markets. I assume the produce is fresher. It is certainly dirtier. And I will start my garden eventually.

What are y'all up to?


Peace