I wasn't going to blog today, but I skimmed the paper this morning, as I often do, and I had to share a blurb with you. According to national news: 3 US States have chosen to order ground beef for their National School Lunch Program that contains "the product known as lean finely textured beef....The filler is made of fatty bits of beef that are heated then treated with a puff of ammonia to kill bacteria." Luckily: "federal regulators say it's safe to eat."
I don't even know where to start with this, but I will say that I am happy that the rest of the US is seeing things how I see them: if you are going to go ahead and put commerical meat in school lunches, it should probably not be treated with a puff of ammonia. Just a thought.
(BTW: Our family does purchase weekly small portions of chicken and beef, only from the local farmers market. The difference is the way the animals are fed, raised and slaughtered. I personally find there is no truly humane way to raise an animal in order to eat it, even on a small family farm. Simply, some ways are better than others. The "meat argument" is an ongoing and thoughtful source of emotion for me.)
In other news: Venus went past the sun. Amazing, perhaps. But must say, it wasn't the large source of excitement for me as it may have been for others. Some folks pray and do odd dances and attest to feeling the planetary shift in their emotional lives. Hmmm. All well and good. Even wonderful. But. I tend to be in agreement with Woody Allen who once said: "I'm astounded by people who want to 'know' the universe when it's hard enough to find your way around Chinatown."
By the way, The Brad says he would love the opportunity to go out into space. I believe my mother would do it too. Maybe some day I'll feel ready, but for now I'll be here on planet earth, astounded at the microcosms growing in my compost bin.
xoxo
