No Impact Challenge

We're trying this on.

http://noimpactproject.org/experiment/

This project is really well designed and user friendly. They ask you to register and participate in surveys and record your progress, but that's it. There's no guilt or 'should's', just suggestions and information to engage, empower, and encourage you to consider your lifestyle and habits and your impact on the planet.

I like the positive spin on change. I think that many people are turned away from more environmentally friendly options because of the pervasive belief that they must do without. The project's How-To Manual contains copious links, advice, and accessible information sources for finding local food, eco-products, low-impact means of travel, etc..

It started today, and so far I'm feeling good about it. Today's tasks were to keep a (cloth) bag with me all day and fill it with all my trash, recyclables, and food waste, and to write a list of items I need to purchase this week. These tasks are meant to make you aware of your consumption habits and get you thinking about waste, packaging, and necessity. I was surprised today to realize how automatic throwing packaging away is for me. I consider myself to be a fairy conscious consumer but I often don't think about an item's packaging at point of purchase. I think I did well, compared to most. Towards the end of the day I was critically examining what I wanted to use to minimize the waste. I'm not worried about our food waste - it goes straight into the compost bin for garden use. As for the list, I only had two items on it: groceries and car parts/repairs (our car's water pump pulley propeller sheared in half. Luckily it happened about 100m from the house so when Ian lost power he was able to push it back into our parking spot). I would like to buy a child's bike seat and helmet soon but that is not a necessity this week.

Anyways, I will TRY to update every day this week. I'm really excited. I think this is just the push I need.

This poor blog...

...is so neglected.

Life has been rather wild for us lately.  

I've been involved in the North Saanich Farmer's Market.  Every Saturday until Thanksgiving (Canadian Thanksgiving, that is) I get out of bed at three a.m. (!!!) and bake wholesome grain breads and pastries.  I start prepping items and doughs as early as Tuesday and then bake all day Friday and go to bed around midnight.  

Fearghus has gone from rocking on his hands and knees to crawling to cruising in two weeks!  It's madness.  I can't keep up with this guy.  He has two teeth, now, also.

Our garden has been hugely productive, but with many let downs.  It was a learning year for us.  I am intending to post about it at some point, I swear.  Today I picked ten pounds of tomatoes!!

Anyways, children calling.....

Mushrooming!

I spied a mushroom when I was out walking with friends a few days ago. Yesterday I called up a friend of mine who knows how to identify mushrooms and invited her over for dinner and a forest mushroom hunt. So first we had a fabulous supper of mostly our own produce(!), some local chocolates for desert, and then we went on a little adventure to find the mushroom.



These aren't my photos...I forgot to bring my camera. We identified the mushroom as 'Agaricus augustus', commonly called the Prince mushroom. It is very rare, except on the west coast and islands. It is also one of the few summer sprouting mushrooms (which was why I noticed it in the first place - how odd for a mushroom to sprout in early June!). They are entirely edible. Our little mushroom book says," Very edible! One of the best!"

There were only three mushrooms, so, like responsible mushroomers, we only picked one (the second rule of mushrooming is never to pick more than 1/3 of any crop). And we took it home, sliced it up, sauteed it in butter and white wine. I wish I had taken photos. Oh well. Hopefully there will be many more later this summer! As for the edibility....I can honestly say I have never eaten such a delicious mushroom! My first thought was that it tasted like cheese toast (isn't that bizarre?). It was nutty, creamy, and sweet. One of the identifiers of this mushroom is that it smells like almond extract, and does it ever! There was a residual almondy-ness after it was cooked. It cooked up to be quite yellow. If I can find enough, I will make cream of mushroom soup....I think these mushrooms would make THE best. It puts grocery store mushrooms to shame.



We scoured the forest floor for nearly an hour last night but couldn't find any more. Sigh. I sure hope we can find more. In the meantime, I think I might be forming an unnatural addiction to my mushroom book.