Wednesday, April 4, 2007

Errand day.

OH. MY. GOD.


I got most of the laundry off the line after a marathon FIVE days spent drying. Those towels and cotton t-shirts...still up there. They take SO LONG!

Today:

Walk the dog
Feed the kids,
Oh yah, feed myself too,
Do laundry
Go to the market for veggies and fruit...good fun.
Put away the produce
Go to the vet and return the stupid dog head cone that we never had to use
Go to the post office, mail two letters
Go to the grocery store. Darn it I forgot the knapsack, we have to carry it all in our hands,
Good thing the kids are here
Put the groceries away
E-mail/read posts
Go to the dog store to order tag, dog treats and dog toys
Give the dog the toy and laugh at him
Talk with my FOLKS on the phone. YEAH!
Feed kids
Oh yah, feed me too
Laundry
Post
..........
Still to do
Dishes
Airlines
Library
Fold laundry
Cook dinner.....

Right now I am reading a book called "The Omnivore's Dilemma, a natural history of four meals." by Michael Pollan. Well, did you ever read "Fast Food Nation"? You'll never look at a burger the same way again, indeed you may never look at a burger again. This book is different, as it is less involved in the fast-food, beef industry, and more in the entire agribusiness and government interplay....not pleasant reading. I sure feel good being over here. There's more food in the food. An excellent book, well written, and again...there's a whole lot of stuff you may never face again....There is something wrong in the state of agriculture today.

I really believe that we should know what is in the food we eat, and more importantly, the impact on the globe we are leaving to our children as a result of the choices we make today. The current agribusiness model, according to this book, is not doing our kids any favours...nor our grandchildren. The sheer overwhelming volume of fossil fuels that go into the calories that we eat, and the overwhelming omnipresence of corn (read the book, it's a bit complicated) is bad enough. The fact the the government of the US, and I assume Canada as well, are paying farmers to produce a surplus, and they are going broke doing it is simply warped. Financially, physically for the farmers, farm workers, consumers...literally, and the planet. And our grandchildren, if not our children. Read it and see what you think. Then change how you eat. Most likely we all need to. More importantly talk to your MP or whatever about the decisions government is making for us.

I got the book from the jewelry making friend...it was tucked, if you can tuck such a hefty tome, into the box. She's the same one who lent me Fast Food Nation. Can you tell she's a nutritionist as well?

On a more mundane note, I am looking into buying a digital camera....Esben has been giving me some pointers, and a friend from cruising is pointing out the "Pandora's box" of choice, learning and confusion that is yawning open in front of me as I contemplate this...once I make my way up the learning curve, you can look forward to more photos...and so can our family. YIPEEE! Esben is recommending either a,

"Panasonic Lumix DMC FZ-50. This is a so called bridge camera meaning that it has many of the functions (and the size) of the really good expensive cameras, but comes in one single package meaning you don't have to worry about changing lenses and stuff like that (but of course that also reduces versatility)."

OR, he said:

"The best I can advise you is to buy for your needs. There is no need to get a camera with all sorts of fancy options and handles if you're always going to keep it stuck on auto anyway. In that case a small compact camera such as the Canon IXUS or a Sony Cybershot."

Given how beautiful his photos are, I am inclined to take his advice, and I am now mostly debating between the Panasonic and the Canon[although I am craving that Panasonic]. If any of you out there have strong feelings or great knowledge, feel free to toss it out. This is a big decision, and I don't want to screw it up....I'll have to take my time over it...urgh. And do it in Catalan and Castillian, at least some of it.

The dog is begging for a walk...and I think it might rain AGAIN!!!! AAAAAaarrrghhhhh!

...later

IT'S RAINING!!! Just in time for the walk...the kids are moving the laundry into the small room up there, which I don't want them to do, it smells yucky in there and so will our clothing, but again, you pick your battles.

ARGH RAIN AGAIN!!!! Am I in Seattle? UK? Newfoundland? No that would be a blizzard with fog.

9 comments:

Helen said...

My only camera advice is get one with decent batteries, not just AA batteries whether rechargable or not. The normal AA batteries wear out really fast, which is why I went for a lithium rechargable one which can last a couple of days with sporadic use and a day of heavy use - not that I am exactly a serious photographer though. I'm always pleased when people have heads.

Anonymous said...

We have had the Sony cybershot for about 3 years and it is not very good...the pix are not all that clear and the stupid thing has to "warm" up which is bad for action shots.

Angel said...

just keep saying..."April showers bring May flowers..." or something like that....maybe you should say "just keep swimming...just keep swimming"!!!!

I have a Canon with all the "extras" and I love it! Best camera ever!

Angel said...

just keep saying..."April showers bring May flowers..." or something like that....maybe you should say "just keep swimming...just keep swimming"!!!!

I have a Canon with all the "extras" and I love it! Best camera ever!

Jocelyn said...

I was just thinking how cool it is that you have the good sense to love a trip to the market, and then you went off on two of my favorite books. Agreed on the importance of food choices!

Unknown said...

Wow. Your to-do list is just like my wife's. Yeesh.

My camera is a cheap Kodak. It's the size of an old point-and-shoot but now it looks like a brick compared with a lot of digital cameras.

oreneta said...

Helen: They do go through AA's at a remarkable speed don't they.

Trish: I am less keen on the Sony, although my Dad has one from last year, and he likes it....I'll be sure to check the wait time, I know on some of them that it is LOOONG... Thanks for the heads up.

Beth: I was hoping you'd wade in here...heehee hee...your photos of those boys running are pretty good...can you come up with the specs on the camera?

Jocelyn: They're good, but scary and depressing.

DD: Don't you both work full time? Why doesn't my list look like half of your list AND half of hers hmmmmm?

Joanne Vive la Fr said...

OK - most of you know who I am - and I have read Fast Food Nation - and let me tell you - it made me go off beef for 3 months just from the sheer - ick - of it - and even though I live solidly in Europe and even more so in PL where giant agro - bus has definitely NOT taken hold. Really really scary - especially the fact that the government seems to sanction and encourage that the worst crap goes to school lunches! Very happy that my elder childs pre-school does not have catered lunches. I think I will never let my children eat any kind of school lunches.
Ironically makes me think better (in safety terms) of fast food - (some of it anyway) cause I know they have a huge vested interest in their clients not being poisoned :-) If you want to check out a really cool site about this topic (cant believe I'm recommending this) check out The Meatrix - (google it - don't remember the address) - if you have any clue about the movie Matrix and are interested in this issue - you will love it (especially Mr K and Boo i think) - (don't tell my boss I wrote this - ha ha)

oreneta said...

Joanne: I'll check that out. Thanks