The Solar Power Village

http://www.solarpowervillage.info/

Take a moment to take a look at this link, the work that these folks are doing is amazing!

braised fresh greens with chickpeas

I was in a bit of a rush to prepare lunch and working with what i had in the garden and fridge today, which led me to experiment, due to the items on hand! This took all of 15 min to prepare.

A mixture of kale, swiss chard and mustard greens braised in a small amount of coconut oil, for a few moments, until wilted and tender.

Add a bit of pepper, Bragg’s amino acids and a touch of lemon juice- i bet you could sub a bit of vinegar here…

a few moments prior to removing from heat. toss in a hand-full of cooked chickpeas, and warm them up in the greens.

Serve like it is, or pack it up as an on the go lunch!

Vegan protein bars/crust for pie/chocolate covered seed balls

Use this recipe for ‘no-bake’ pies, mousse pies, vegan ‘cheese’ cake, protein bars or roll into small balls and dip in vegan semi-sweet fairly traded melted chocolate chips yum-delicious! This is a recipe that can vary depending on what you have on hand.

You need a food processor to really grind it all down, and I tend to just add a bit of this and a bit of that when I cook, so the measurements are a basic guide, meant to be played with!

1/2 cup each: organic dates and organic raisins- process these to a finely chopped mix

Add 1/2 cup each: all organic and raw- pecans,  pumpkin seeds, and shredded coconut.

Optional: 1/4 cup sunflower seeds, black sesame seed

1/4 – 1/2 cup peanut butter or almond butter

to further sweeten (the dates and raisins are fairly sweet) I add either organic maple syrup, or agave nectar, or a bit of molasses (1-2 Tblspn) and barley malt sweetener.  Begin by adding a small amount-1/4 cup or so, and add as you need more.

1-2 cups organic raw oats-process well: I add this to create the consistency desired, you want to be able to form a ball, and have it hold it’s shape, but not too oily (from the nut butters).

a bit of salt, and sometimes I add freshly grated nutmeg!

set aside a small amount of this mixture.

Then either press the larger portion of the seed mixture into a pie plate, creating a thin crust, or spoon into a lightly oiled dish (coconut oil is nice for this) and press mixture into a ‘energy bar’ like thickness and chill for a bit.  The bars can be cut and wrapped in waxed paper, or left in glass container in the fridge.  Add other ‘pie’ ingredients to the crust and chill.  I’ve never used this for a baked pie, but I think it would work well.  Eat within a week.  I’ve never tried to freeze the protein bars, they’ve really never lasted that long to explore this!

Now, take the mix you set aside, and roll into small seed balls- set aside and in a double boiler, melt vegan, organic, fairly traded dark chocolate.  Mix smoothly when melted and place seed balls in the chocolate and cover- place chocolate covered seed balls on waxed paper and place in fridge for a few hours prior to serving.  Don’t wait too long though…Eat fresh!  Enjoy! Linda

vegan ‘cheese’

This ‘cheese’ is super delicious, and can be sweet or savory, depending on your desired outcome.

3 cups organic raw cashews-soaked for 24 hours in filtered water (just enough to cover)  when soaking is complete drain and rinse cashews.  the cashews can be stored in the fridge for a few hours, if need be.

Place cashews in a food processor, and blend well, adding a bit of filtered water to process into a thick cheese-like consistency.

Add Celtic gray salt, freshly ground pepper, finely chopped fresh thyme and about 1-2Tblspn lemon juice.  Finely chopped rosemary or fresh cilantro, chives…any herb that you like, really!  I would tend to go with combinations that you know go well together.

Note: the more water- the thinner the cheese, so go light at first and add in small amounts to get the consistency you want.  The cashews tend to made a sweet cheese, so the herbs and lemon help to make it a bit savory.  If a sweet cheese is what you want, then omit the pepper, lemon and thyme and add cinnamon and raisins! …or leave it in it’s sweet simple cashew goodness.  The best bet is to taste, and imagine what might taste good with it, this is often the approach I take with making food.

This ‘cheese’ is great for a spread, or use it in place of cheese in raw lasagna.

You’ll want to store the ‘cheese’ in a glass container and eat within a few days.  This is live food, so it is important to eat it fresh!   Enjoy.  Linda

Simply Green

What does this mean? …..thoughts of a cleaning product to mind? No this is not what I mean by simply green. Stripping ourselves down, to simplify- reduce use of resources. Walk lightly upon this Earth. This is what I am referring to when I use the term simply green.

For some it has been a choice to live this way for some time now. It is now far from a choice. It is a necessity.

Below are some examples on how you can be simply green everyday!

I work once a week at a shop that sells, amongst other things, freshly brewed chai tea (some say the best in town). I chance to say that the better part of the customer base that comes in for chai, is well educated in what is going on with our environment. Last week two people brought their own reusable containers. And we serve a fair amount of tea here. This saddens me to no end, to witness this. It is not difficult to carry a cup.

1. If you are one who regularly seeks beverages to go- please begin to think about the huge difference you can make by carrying a reusable cup.

With all the information out on plastic bottles, and the amount of money Americans spend on bottled water, I find it hard to believe that so many people continue to purchase bottled water. Two big problems that encouraged me to commit to reduce my consumption of bottled water are the toxins that leach into the water once air hits the internal plastic, so every time you ‘reuse’ that bottle, thinking you are being a conscious consumer, you are exposing yourself to toxic chemicals. The other major factor for me was when I found out that ‘recycling’ the plastic meant it was being shipped to Indonesia to be processed, with women and children working to ‘recycle’ in very unsafe conditions. I do not want to contribute to that!

http://www.healthobservatory.org/library.cfm?RefID=77083

Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy- Smart Plastics guide- guide to safe use of plastic with food, especially where children are concerned.

2. If you consume water outside your home or work, it is easy to carry a refillable metal or safe plastic bottle. Refill as you need to, and drinks lots of water!

3. If you like to bring your lunch to work, a snappy stackable metal lunch box is the key! The best lunch boxes come out of India! Or try glass containers that have sealing lids. You don’t need Tupperware anymore! The guide above may mention the risks of warming food in plastic in the microwave. Oh dear- it isn’t good.

4. If you order your lunch togo- ask the restaurant if you can bring in your own container. It is possible, but some restaurants set different policies. Just Say NO to Styrofoam!!!

5. When shopping for groceries, check out all of the packaging. What are you paying for? How far has it been shipped for your consumption? Read- how much energy was used in the production and transport to your hand? Is it really worth all the energy used to buy this product? Please begin asking these questions, it’s not just a novel idea- it matters. Oh, and please don’t forget that fashion-able reusable grocery bag!

6. We can all work toward buying LOCAL, supporting local economies is smart in so many ways. Not only are you lessening the overall burden on the earth, you just may be supporting your neighbor, instead of some fancy suit-wearing CEO!

7. Start cleaning out your closets- anything you haven’t used in two years? Share it with someone who may need it. Haven’t used it in a year? Make a mental note, if you are not willing to let it go just yet. Old books gathering dust? Now, I know we all LOVE books, but they can also be a major cause of stagnant energy, Books to Prisoners is a great non-profit, or your local library….hey, maybe then someone could actually read it! Bring your library down to your favorites, and a few reference books are helpful at times. You’ll start to feel an incredible lightness in your surrounds.

8. Compost your food waste!!! Now, I realize this could have been at the top of the list. If you are an apartment dweller, there are ways you can get creative. Just google ‘compost’ and see what comes up!

9. Now this is a big one, and I’m sure not going to be a popular one but…here it goes- return to a cash based system. Yes, you can do it and it feels SO free! I found out a few years ago how much money my local Co-op spent on processing credit card sales each month….WoW, it’s a wad-o-cash! Something like $10,000, and this is a small, local business. They at the time were trying to get their feet on the ground, so they asked the member owners to shop with cash, whenever possible. It started the process for me to work toward a cash based system. I am close, as I still find myself using my debit card from time to time, but no credit cards for this girl, anymore! Sad thing is, you end up paying for it, in the cost of goods, and then pay for it with interest, all for convenience? Do you know why they (corporate banks) want us to use them- because someone out there is making a whole lot of money. And all these gimmicks to use your debit card as a credit card, don’t fall for it, the stores end up paying more. So, you can cut up your credit cards, and now go simply green from here on out. You can do it!

With wildsynergy!

 

bus stop conversations…

I was standing at the bus stop, and struck up a conversation with a fellow about a man across the street at a corner of a major intersection. The bus to be coming any minute, we began to discuss our perceptions of the man across the street, waiting for people driving by to offer him money. It was apparent to me from the beginning that we did not share the same view, but something enabled us to explore the topic deeply. The bus was not showing signs of being on time, but i was not bothered by that, because of the interaction with this fellow. In writing this, it is not so important his view or mine, it is more about the fact that we kept an intelligent conversation up for a half an hour, the number 8, by now is no where to be seen, so we began walking. At the top of the hill, we parted- and i realize that even though we had completely different opinions- we were able to share our views with each other, without conflict, and i believe we both walked away with something learned.
How often do we engage in conversation on a bus stop corner, face to face with someone that has different views than our own? And to have a discussion, without desire for changing the mind of the other, but more about the sharing of information, so that we can see within ourselves, what feels right. This is beautiful, and i think that it is a time where there is an opening for these connections to be made.

If you are inspired to share your perspective- welcome!
with wild synergy! Linda

An Action of Love…

to- Stimulate the Movement -

President Bush signed a bill today that puts into affect the ‘Economic Stimulus Package”. Every ‘qualifying’ tax payer will receive $300-$600, depending on your income level. If you have children, you will also receive $300 for each child. The US Government hopeful that it will woo us into a frenzy of consumerism.

House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, said “The sooner we get this relief in the hands of the American people, the sooner they can begin to do their job of being good consumers.” -House approves economic recovery plan, By Julie Hirschfeld Davis and Andrew Taylor, Associated Press writers.

The current administration believes Americans are so easily swayed into starry-eyed daydreams of… ‘Things we could have’

I’ve heard response from Economist Bruce Bartlett; “In short, there is virtually no empirical evidence that tax rebates are an effective response to economic slowdowns. The increased personal saving doesn’t help the economy because the federal budget deficit, which can be thought of as negative saving, offsets all of it in the aggregate. The main benefit of a tax rebate would seem to be political — giving politicians a way of appearing to be doing something about the nation’s economic problems that is superficially plausible.”

“A new rebate probably won’t do much harm. But anyone who thinks it will prevent a recession — if one is actually in the pipeline, which is not at all certain — is dreaming.”

One of the many points Economist Alex Tabarrok makes: “There just isn’t that much discretionary spending to play with and even a large increase in spending, say tens of billions, is too small to make much of a difference in a 13 trillion dollar economy. –

Then I asked…What is the COLLECTIVE power of $300-$600per person? The answer I came up with- HUGE!

Is this money an opportunity to support organizations that are working tirelessly to bring an end to the political chaos that the Bush administration has been a key in producing?

Could this turn into a massive action- the people funneling US money to places where it is really needed? Should we really be so concerned with our economy, in a time of such political unrest?

I see this as a way for people to speak loud and clear, with this money, where our focus could really make a passionate impact!

… a tax write-off of the most profound kind!

I also have a clear understanding that there are families and individuals in this country who could really use this money, A friend of mine will put hers towards getting caught up on her rent, I completely support those who will receive this money and put it to necessary uses; US poverty is HUGE and devastating to all of us.

What about all the folks who could live just fine without it (myself included- and there are many others)?

How to appeal to them in this writing? Here is my best attempt:

I am proposing a massive collectively powered ‘Action of Love’- All are invited to partake in this action and it is completely FREE! Think of it as redistribution of US funds- to where the People believe it should go- to ‘Stimulate the Movement’. In this action, we are able to live free from the attachment to acquiring more things, simultaneously redirecting our energy and buying power to actively work for a change so dreadfully needed.

Those who have spoken strongly against the Bush Administration, for the last 8 years can continue to speak loudly that we do not want to be appeased with money “to spend” when so much needs to be done to foster reconciliation between people, between cultures. Many people/groups are doing this work tirelessly, finding means to bridge the gaps of language, culture, and spiritual differences. We can work together in an Action of Love to support these organizations, sending a strong message of solidarity for peace and justice throughout the world. I encourage you to write a check for 50-100% of the amount you receive to one or more of the following non-profits that reside in and out of the U.S. This list is far from exhaustive; it is merely a chance for you to support an organization that you may not have known about.

I have a group called Action of Love on Wiser Earth, if you are inspired to share where you have ‘Stimulated the Movement’ with your Action of Love, please visit the site and share your pledge! http://wiserearth.org/group/ActionofLove/section/main

I am grateful for the assistance of my community in compiling this list:

Middle East Children’s Alliance: www.mecaforpeace.org/

Stop the Wall: www.stopthewall.org/

International Jewish Solidarity Network: www.jewishsolidarity.info/ijsn_purpose_and_points_of_unity

Jewish Voice for Peace: www.jewishvoiceforpeace.org

AGROS International: www.agros.org/

Combatants for Peace: www.combatantsforpeace.org

The Parents Circle-Families Forum: www.theparentscircle.org

The following Organizations are working in solidarity with marginalized communities in the US:

The Bay View (Bay area): www.sfbayview.com/

The Hate Free Zone: www.hatefreezone.org

generationFIVE: www.generationfive.org/

Refugee Women’s Alliance: www.rewa.org

LELO-Legacy of equality, Leadership and Organizing: www.lelo.org

Fierce (NYC): www.fiercenyc.org/

People’s Hurricane Relief Fund: www.peopleshurricane.org/

Real Change Newspaper (Seattle): www.realchangenews.org/

I look forward to the potential impact our collective voices could make. Om Shanti.

In the words of Michael Franti- “Power to the Peaceful!”

My commitment to this Action of Love is in honor of my teachers. In signing my name to this action, I am not holding ownership to the idea, but committing myself to following through with this Action of Love.

Namaste,

Linda Moore

Seattle, Washington

Greening using Ahimsa as a foundation

Ahimsa-non harming is the bases/foundation to my practice, on and off the mat. I guess i could elaborate what i mean when i refer to ‘my practice’- it is the constant conscious evolving that i work to be present and active in, in all that i do- cooking a meal, practicing and teaching an asana class to walking from my home to wherever it is i’ve set out for. Daily presence within my being as well with other beings. This is constant work, that i am dedicated to- and i’d like to say that i am far from perfect in this realm. The focus is on the active dedication, where mistakes are a learning.

So in working with Ahimsa, i constantly challenge myself to not get stuck in the ‘comfy zone’ that is so easy to nestle into. When i receive information that ‘recycling’ my consumed plastic bottle actually sends it to Indonesia, i have to ask myself if it is in keeping with my values? Shouldn’t we be taking care of our own waste? and if we do not have the room here in the states, solutions that are locally based are of the highest importance.

I have decided that my plastic will go into my ‘landfill bound’ pail- ah but this doesn’t seem right, because then it is headed for landfills that generally reside in areas of depressed, disadvantaged communities right here in the states. I ask- is there a difference?

What if this process leads me to the question- do i really need to buy things that are packaged in this petroleum based product? So, in asking myself this question- i find movement within my process, and closer to a solution that is in keeping with my core value of Ahimsa. This is what i mean by stepping outside the ‘comfy zone’.

I have to admit, these decisions are fairly easy for me, because i have the resources to pursue alternatives. There is a local Co-op in Seattle (Central Co-op) where i can bring my glass jars and fill them with biodegradable cleaning products, fill a jar with bulk organic maple syrup, use paper bags to purchase flours and oats, tea and beans. When purchasing veggies, i stay clear, now of the plastic bags, bringing my veggies home in a re-usable or paper bag, placing the leafy greens and such in a metal bowl with a small amount of water in it, and placing a slightly wet cloth napkin over the items in the bowl. Veggies that don’t hang out in the fridge – potatoes, onions, garlic and ginger root- they all hang out in a cool dark place in the kitchen.

My dream is to reduce the size of my fridge- to go under the counter-top near my stove. Here in the states, the fridges are far two big, and then it seems we have to purchase great amounts of food to make it look as though we have something in there! It’s a vicious cycle. My one hold-up with this dream is that to get a fridge of small size that is good quality- is far more expensive than the over-sized ones! So i will continue to work on this.

When i am not using electronics- i turn them off and unplug them! It really is only a bit of work to get the muscle memory down with this one! and it saves so much power doing such an easy task. Another alternative is to install a switch in the room that turns off all power sources in that room, so when you are sleeping, your power usage is resting as well.

The community i live in, Cascade Shelter Project, has made the choice to install ‘on-demand’ hot water heaters in each of our units. We were in the process of an overhaul to the plumbing, so it was easy for us to make this change. The first initial cost was high, but we are seeing great results in so many ways with the conversion! I’m so thankful that we made the choices we made three years ago to do this.

As i continue with the process, i will work to document what i find could be useful to share, i encourage an ongoing dialog of sharing, as we all have something that we do that will inspire others!

Loka Samasta Sukhino Bhavantu-May All Beings Everywhere be Happy and Free. Om Shanti- Linda

An Invitation…

…to share your thoughts on your daily practice- ‘off the mat’ – we all have something to share, something to learn!

in terms of…

environmental stewardship?

community stewardship?

living simply-walking lightly?

What affects your choices when purchasing something?

What affects your choices on what to send to the landfills?

Share your creative options to: plastic, styrofoam, transportation, self care, community care and caring for the earth!

I ask that we be respectful within the realm of this dialog, a focus of your active participation, not what we think others should do. Given the information, we can each begin to make conscious choices.

I am in the process of documenting this myself, and so look forward to hearing other stories!!!

Thanks for the work that you all do!

With Deep Gratitude,

Linda

Walking the…

I work in community on subjects of waste reduction, our impact on this earth, and how we can affect change. It is a personal passion of mine to work towards Zero-waste. As we are educated on environmental issues, working towards a ‘greener’ existence, I tend to have high expectations of the people working to affect change to be ‘walking the talk’. I do not want to go to another meeting and see people sitting around the table discussing these issues, while scooping their to-go lunch from a styrofoam container! I am so frustrated right now with the lack of insight to what we CAN do to affect change in our daily practices. This has to happen before we can make demands on changing policy to reflect our envisioning for a ‘better world’.

We can make choices, if we have the information and the resources to be active in choice. Anything else is pure laziness.

We don’t have the option, right now to be asleep, to be lazy. We can make small steps to reduce our impact on the environment in so many ways! We can bring re-usable glass or metal containers to a restaurant for a to-go order. We can carry around a re-usable mug for our favorite- on the go- coffee or tea beverage. We can bring glass containers to the co-op, have them pre-weighed, and fill with environmentally safe cleaning products and bulk food items. We can encourage our stores and such to carry bulk items, so we do not have to succumb to buying everything overly packaged in plastic. If enough ‘demand with our dollar’ points strongly in the direction of reducing the consumption of plastics and styrofoam, there will be change. There’s no time to wait for someone else to do it. We can let go of our false need for highly processed foods ‘healthful’ or otherwise. We can choose to support local food sources as best we can, especially if we have the resources to do so. These are only a few of the many possibilities.

Response-ability…..our ability to respond to a given situation. I was introduced to this way of looking at that word by John Trudell, a poet and one of the indigenous peoples of North America. It has really been key for me in working within the scope of community based organizing. We all have a piece to give and we all have our own capacity to engage in the process of “being the change we wish to see in the world”.

Our individual response-ability is to be very clear with ourselves what that capacity is, and to be an active participant in our own evolutionary process. Nothing stagnant.

So often I see the pasted up quote by Gandhi, as a reminder, but after a while- it’s almost as if that’s all that is needed to ‘prove’ we are doing something. How often do you ‘check-in’ with how you are doing?

In the study of Yoga, we are reminded to have those ‘check-ins’ in the form of svadhyaya- self study. This is a constant practice, of high importance, through the uncovering of our inner true-self. Revolution without the work of Self-revolution is dangerous to our complete existence on this earth. It is effectively what has brought us to the state we are in currently.

I only hope that we can begin to see that the simple steps we can make to affect change, actually take less time and energy on a whole, than our choice to remain lazy.

Begin with a musing of your core values, and work to live those values. Do whatever you can to keep evolving through the process of inner self study. It’s not easy at first- but with active participation- being completely present with who you are and how you affect the larger picture with your choices becomes 1st nature (rather than 2nd nature). Share your insights with friends, listen to their experiences.

Teach and Learn by doing, this is truly a beautiful way of being!

With Wild Synergy!