China – 1

Three days later China scores a point. I just realized on September 24th I bought Petstages Mightie Mouse toys for my cats when I was picking up their food.  Their food by the way is made in Pacoima, California not China so that is good. I didn’t even think about checking when I grabbed it.

I am lucky up till now that this is the first time this has happened as I keep remembering after the fact. Then when I check I have been relieved each time. I need to train my brain. I said it!  This time I did not even realize it till a few minutes ago when I was picking up their toys and thought man this stuff is totally made in China…whoops. :]

Listen, I’m on it.

-Cara

Tao Te Ching

 

Well planted, not uprooted.

Well embraced, never lost.

Descendants will continue

The ancestral rituals.

 

Maintain oneself:

TE becomes real.

Maintain the family:

TE becomes abundant.

Maintain the community:

TE becomes extensive.

Maintain the country:

TE becomes prolific.

Maintain the world:

TE becomes omnipresent.

 

Therefore,

Through self contemplate self,

Through family contemplate family,

Through community contemplate community,

Through country contemplate country,

Through world contemplate world.

 

How do I know the world?

 

I tz’u

Like this!

 

-Lao-Tzu

Organic Peanut Sauce on Organic Lo Mein Noodles if You’d Like

I came up with this sauce using my brain and perusing other peanut sauces on-line. It’s great on cold organic Lo Mein noodles or whatever else you want a cold peanut butter based sauce on.

What You Need

organic Lo Mein noodles (Roland Organic makes some)

1/2 cup organic peanut butter (crunchy or smooth…I myself like it crunchy style…)

1/2 cup of cold water

2 tablespoons Bragg Liquid Aminos

2 tablespoons organic lime juice

1 clove organic garlic, minced

2 teaspoons organic grated ginger

some salt and pepper to taste

What to Do

If you are making the cold Lo Mein noodles, in a large pot of boiling water, cook the noodles, gently separating the strands with a long fork as they soften, until barely tender (about 2 minutes). Drain and rinse under cold running water to stop the cooking; drain well. Dump into a bowl and toss with 1/2 tablespoon of the sesame oil to prevent sticking, cover, put it in the refrigerator.

Take all the above ingredients (except the noodles!) and put them in a mixer or food processor and mix well. Makes about 1 cup.

Depending on how many noodles you make or how saucy you like your noodles is how much of the organic peanut sauce you should use. I like to then put the sauced noodles in covered glass container or a covered ceramic casserole dish and let them sit around for a few hours or until the next day lunch to soak in the flavor.

Do it how you do and enjoy.

-Cara

Another Review of Stuff People Sent Me

It has been a few weeks since my first review of Eco Lips lip balm, so time for another. This review is on the Radius Intelligent manual toothbrush. The one I received is red, which according to the Chinese is a color that brings good luck and wards off evil spirits, so already I was pleased. The toothbrush has soft bristles, which are recommended by everyone to use according to me. :)

Here are some stats about said toothbrush from the Official Radius Site:

• 2 minute timer — toothbrush beeps once and green light flashes once every 30 sec. to 2 minutes.
• 90 Day wear meter – after 180 uses the light changes to red to indicate time to check bristle wear.
• Depressing the button for 5 seconds resets the meter to zero.
• Replaceable heads – reduces environmental impact.
• Radial bristling – first toothbrush in the world to have it. Makes brushing easier and more effective.
• 3,080 Tynex® bristles – available in soft or medium. Right or left hand option – reversible handle
• Batteries will last over 6 heads worth of regular use – return the handle to us for recycling.

Things I like about this toothbrush:

• The color is a sweet cherry red.
• The handle is a great design. It fits really well into my hand. What is that awesome word that blew up in the 90’s…ergonomic…yeah, it is very ergonomic.
• The heads are replaceable and they give you two with the brush. Nice…
• The actual bristle head shape is narrow at the top and becomes wider towards the handle. I don’t know why, but it feels like the brush covers more tooth area and my teeth feel cleaner.

One thing is the timer. I rarely use it. Two minutes seems like an eternity while I wait for the brush to flash in thirty second increments. What then happens is I begin to resent the brush like it is nagging me. It is ridiculous, but true. This is why I never use the timer [well, once and awhile just to see if I still resent it.]. Here is how the two-minute brush still works for me, because now I know I should brush for two minutes I brush much longer than before, most likely for more than two minutes, because I am never sure of the time, so in the end it is still does its trick…but that is just me and how I roll.

Good stuff.

-Cara

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Reason 76 from, 101 Reasons Why I Am Vegetarian:

As markets for animal-based foods become more global, “carnivore conflicts” increasingly threaten international peace. Live cattle from Canada are still banned from the U.S., ever since a “mad cow” of Canadian origin was discovered in Washington state. In 2001, hoof-and-mouth disease instantly resulted in countries all over the world severing trade with the entire EU, although the disease was mostly confined to England. Meanwhile, trade wars simmer between the U.S. and the EU over hormones in beef. Worldwide, varying sanitary standards in meat production also leave nations at odds. No two “true democracies” have ever gone to war, some academics argue, that is, if you don’t count violence over fisheries.