Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Late Night Ramblings

Has anyone seen this movie? I haven't, mainly because I am scared. Truly, I am. My friends tell me it will change how I look at what I eat. Hey, it even says so on the front cover. It must be true.

I haven't entirely bought into the whole organic thing.
Yes, you heard me right. GASP!!!! Shock! Horror! Hiss, BOO!!! I know, I know.
I know it's not something I need to "buy into", it's just hard for me to change.

Hey, I was raised on corned beef and hash and hot dogs and wienies remember? It's sort of difficult for me to change a mindset that is so hard wired into me. I tried to become a vegetarian in high school. I even went around the local supermarkets with my friend Misha and plastered "MEAT IS MURDER" stickers from PETA all over packages of steak. I'm surprised we didn't get arrested. But one night my dad said I couldn't leave the dinner table until I had finished my hamburger, and I sort of gave up.
And that was that.

I am not opposed to going organic and trying to cut down on our meat intake, but I'm cheap remember? I see the organic meat and it's literally 4 times as much as the regular old grocery brand. A gallon of milk is almost twice as much, although I did break down and buy it this week. I have gone all organic with my eggs. I was sold on cage free O eggs a couple of months back when I had both in my fridge, and I cracked 1 of each open in a bowl to scramble up, and the O egg was almost twice as big as the non-O egg. See, in my mind I can justify that because even though it costs more, it's like I'm getting twice as much for my dollar!

Anyhow, it's just a tough pill to swallow but I'm going to try on the big things we eat and drink everyday. The movie's on our Netflix cue so I'll let you know what I thought about it. If anyone has seen it please chime in your thoughts!


On another note, in case anyone is curious, I finally unpacked the box. In his defense it was mostly my stuff. However, in my defense, I unpacked a lot of his stuff. Oh well. Moving on...

I'm convinced that crafting and blogging are a lethal combination. My brain is on overload lately with all the clicking around from site to site to link to link looking at all these positively perfect crafty creations. I feel like my head is about to explode any minute! Never enough time or energy. And all the clicking and linking and nonsense puts all these crazy ideas in my head that I MUST CREATE and I MUST DO IT ALL MYSELF!?!?!

Anyone else ever feel this way?
An example to prove a point. In the last day I have somehow convinced myself that I need to:
  • Make my own chai
  • Make my own headbands
  • Ditch the shampoo and conditioner and switch to baking soda and apple cider rinse for the kids (which I think I might actually do after talking to my mom and MIL last night)
  • Make Taylor's birthday invitations myself
  • Redecorate my entire house for spring
Ah, I think that's about it. Oh, and I have to do all above said things IMMEDIATELY! Because I am not a patient person and I want to cross things off my list and get things done!

Which brings me to my next question. Anyone read this book? It looks like an interesting read. Might check it out.


And finally, in an effort to save money we have ditched the cleaning crew that came twice a month. Although, when things get a little out of hand around these parts I do allow myself to call them in an emergency. The last time said emergency occurred the cleaning crew charged me extra because the house was "so dirty". NICE. I can't wait to see what they're going to charge me on Monday.

Hey, the post was titled Ramblings, so don't blame me, you were forewarned.
Good night my friends! I've got a headband to make.

11 comments:

  1. This movie was an eye opener for me. I'm all for being healthier (although I love my junk as much as the next girl) but like you, I hate spending the extra money. First I saw this movie and it really made me want to make some changes. Then, I read Jillian Michaels' newest book, Master Your Metabolism and the combination of the two literally made me want to go live in a cave somewhere in the wilderness, away from all the over-processing and chemical laden foods. Curious to hear what you think of it!

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  2. I have heard of both books and probably should read it. Why? I love junk. I used to have amazing will power. Tody, not so much. I am right with you on the blog searching and how your mind ticks afterwards. I can't do it at night.. no sleep. So, a.m. it is! Have a super day.

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  3. My new puppy has made me a morning person. Not by will of course, but you and Summer Plummer have got me looking at the "happy" things so this morning I thanked God for the brisk fresh air and the extra quiet time as I was waiting on the little monster to do his business at 5:45 a.m.

    As for the movie...I'm afraid to watch it. As a lover of Spam, I choose to remain blissfully ignorant for now :)

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  4. Hi Andrea, it's probably faster to watch the movie then to read all of the Michael Pollan books that I did. Biggest message to me is that our food system in the USA is awful and we allow processors to put high fructose corn syrup (didn't exist until the 1980's) and hydrogenated fats into our food. As a country, we prefer cheap over wholesome and this is what we get. Why do you think so many more folks are overweight and get type II diabetes. It's not just the video games! Just my little 2 cents for the morning!

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  5. great post Andrea - that book is on my list and the movie I need to add to my netflix too.
    As one who did just undertook a move for her kids future and happiness, one explanation of how to swallow the cost increases for organic food is simple = our kids. Not to mention taste, environment, etc...
    Although I must admit I am no posterchild, I bought Whole Wheat Ritz crackers the other day b/c they were on sale only to look at the ingredients once home to find out they have the high fructose corn syrup & I thought I was making a healthier choice by buying the whole wheat versions!

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  6. hey andrea - we met at blog sugar but this is the first time i've been on your blog...i love it.
    i am reading that book too and have a few posts on my blog about it - i love the book so far. here was my first one...
    http://mimibellaboo.blogspot.com/2010/01/happiness-project-beginning.html

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  7. Yes, yes, and yes. I share your opinion on everything on this post. Except homeade shampoo and conditioner. :)

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  8. Hi Andrea! I haven't visited in a while. I think you took a little break and then I kept forgetting to stop by. I love all your new changes. Everything looks great! I just read like the past 20 posts. THIS one though, had me cracking up! And Lord knows I need that right now.
    I totally know what you mean. It can be inspiring and paralzying at the same time, no? All these great things to make and do and sometimes I can hardly make toast for breakfast let alone with homemade bread. Oh well. We do our best.
    Also, I am so interested in the Blog Sugar events. I am hoping to tag along on the next one. Would you mind? Then we could meet in real life, not just blog land.
    Anyway, sorry for this long winded comment. I wanted to catch up.
    See you around here real soon.
    Greta

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  9. hey gals, thanks for the input on the above ramblings :) jen, so fun to see someone is reading this book. I will have to go back and check your post. Regarding the organic thing, i have been thinking about it all day. I think I may have misrepresented myself when I said I do not buy organic because I am cheap. While cost is a huge part of it, a lot of it is because I am not educated enough on the topic. And until I can make conscious choices and decisions for myself and my family based off of factual evidence, I will continue to feed my family the best way I can, which if you know me well enough, you know overall we eat a pretty healthy diet. TONS of fresh fruits and veggies, fish, etc., not many sweets and zero to none processed foods. Heck I have a 500 sq ft garden plot! I guess what I am trying to say is that I still have a lot of questions on the whole organic thing, and I'm not going to just buy organic to buy it. Does that make sense??? I think I will write a post on Saturday that details my questions and maybe see what the response is. Should keep everyone glued to their seats reading that topic!

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  10. Yes, of course I've seen Food Inc. :) It's really not all that terrifying. There are worse/more graphic (and true) biographies out there, but I am glad it's made it's way into the mainstream.
    I'm also glad you're considering the no-poo routine. Just remember you have to be really aware of the amounts you use. Some people have reactions to too much baking soda, and some people have a very sensitive scalp where the vinegar can hurt.
    Yes...blogging and log reading can become a weird obsession that compounds upon itself. I try to follow a few good ones that I really like and read their updates every few days or so. I also try not to compare my life to theirs. Let's all remember bloggers blog about what they do best (most of the time) not their regular messy lives! Nice to hear your house is a mess sometimes! :)
    Oh and I love the new banner.
    xoxo

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  11. Brian and I have been talking a lot about this recently. We are definitely cutting down a lot on our meat consumption; he has always refused to let the girls eat ground beef. I've actually been thinking about buying 1/4 of a sustainably raised, grass-fed, humanely butchered cow. I just need a dedicated freezer and a hubby who doesn't think I've lost it!

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