Blog Milestone

As I did my usual morning check-in on my blog, I noticed that by chance my visit had triggered the hit-counter to register 25,000. This isn't an accurate count of visits to the site, as it records every page-view anywhere on the site, including my own. Still, because we have ten fingers and so tend to find multiples of ten compelling, 25,000 still seems a significant milestone. Thanks for all who have visited, and especially to my modest cadre of regular readers. Penelopedia has been one of the most enjoyable and meaningful things I've ever done. It's inspired and enabled me to learn a lot in the interest of being accurate here, and it's given me an ongoing reason to get out there and notice things. Because that's essentially what this blog is all about: the excitement to be found in noticing the world around us.

Young Barn Swallow

This young barn swallow sat for a few moments at the edge of a roof this afternoon. We were able to take some photos through the spotting scope from just a few yards away. I'm amazed at the texture of the downy feathers visible at this close range, as well as their lovely apricot color.

Eat Local Anniversary Dinner

This delicious and colorful mixture of summer vegetables with shrimp, served over pasta, made up our mostly-local dinner last night. It was our wedding anniversary - one year ago Dave and I were married on the deck of our dear friends Sarah and Bob's house in the nearby countryside. Tonight I made a recipe from a book called Serving Up the Harvest, by Andrea Chesman, which I bought in Duluth while we were on our honeymoon, so that seems fitting. It's a sautée of zucchini and yellow squash (from my garden and the farmer's market), yellow and red tomatoes (from the co-op and farmer's market), a yellow Hungarian pepper (from the garden), white wine, saffron, garlic, and fresh basil (from the garden). Oh, and yes, some shrimp out of the back of the freezer, slightly freezer-burned. (My approach to Eat Local challenges is always: if it's in my house already, it counts as local!) Fresher shrimp would certainly have been better, but this was really good anyway! The photo shows the final view in the skillet before the sauce was tossed with pasta shells.

Green Herons

This green heron, along with two others we saw nearby this evening, was hanging about at the mudflats next to one of the marshy ponds east of the soccer fields in southeastern Northfield. We walked there last night and saw two of these herons; we came this evening with camera and spotting scope, but it was bit too late for optimal lighting. We'll have to try again during full daylight, but they may be shyer then.

Still, you can get a nice idea of the striking coloring and (in the top photo) the crest of this smaller (16-22") relative of the great blue heron we are more used to seeing. Green herons can be found throughout almost all of Minnesota during the summer, but their low profile and somewhat secretive habits tend not to make them an everyday sight. These birds we saw today and yesterday make up only about the third green heron sighting I've ever had.

Green herons are known to use bait to catch fish, dropping insects, twigs and other items onto the water to attract a nibble. Look at the size of that beak!

Eating Thoughtfully - In August and Year-round

It's time for the Eat Local Challenge once again! The particulars for our local effort are much as they have been before, except that this year the challenge runs from August 1 to August 31.

Of course, the bounty of fresh, delicious, local produce at this time of year makes such a challenge about as easy as it could be in Minnesota. (Ooh, have you noticed that Grisim's sweet corn stand is now open on Water St. in Northfield?!) But it's not superfluous, because even for those who would be eating a lot of their food from local sources in midsummer anyway, the challenge nudges us to consider why we eat what we eat and how we think about food.

My own thinking about food has come quite a long way in the last couple of years. My very first Penelopedia post spoke of the inspiration I'd gained from Barbara Kingsolver's book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle and my feeling that by eating more locally, organically, and sustainably, I could "do some good for the local land, the global environment, and the local economy." I still believe that.

But I've learned more. In particular, I've learned about the benefits of grass.

To make a long and very interesting story short*, the evidence is powerful that when cows eat primarily grass (their natural food), not corn and other grains, they are healthier. Their meat is healthier for us to eat. The fats in their meat and milk are healthier - downright good for a body, in fact. (Really!) And the land, air, and water where they are raised is healthier (natural fertilizer is automatically provided, no need to raise lots of pesticide-intensive corn, more natural and diverse ecosystems to support birds and other creatures, and so on).

As I've quoted before and will doubtless quote again, "Eating is an agricultural act." (Wendell Berry) Where you buy your food and what you eat have effects far beyond your own household. Cheap industrial food comes at a real cost. Especially in the area of meat, dairy, and other animal products, I now find the hidden costs of "cheap" food unacceptable for myself. The high rate of production and resulting low price of meat or milk come at the cost of the animals' quality of life, the waste-disposal challenges caused by large concentrated animal production facilities, and a significant portion of the traditional healthfulness of the meat or milk itself. It's not a trade-off I can routinely make in good conscience anymore.

If you haven't put much thought into where your food comes from and how it is produced, perhaps the annual Eat Local Challenge is a good time to give it some thought. Consider cooking more whole foods from scratch, so you have more control over your ingredients. Buy from a farmers' market or a co-op or other source where you can determine something about how and where the food was raised. If you eat meat, choose meat from animals raised humanely and provided a traditional diet for which they are biologically suited. Seek out dairy products and beef from grass-fed cows. Favor traditional foods, raised well, over industrial foods.

And enjoy some wonderful local food this August.

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*If you want longer versions of the story, here are some books I recommend:

• Real Food - Nina Plank (a book that may well turn your ideas about dairy products and about traditional fats like butter and lard on their heads)
• The Omnivore's Dilemma - Michael Pollan
• In Defense of Food - Michael Pollan
• The Compassionate Carnivore - Catherine Friend (a local farmer and author)