Take a look, it's in a book...

I'm a total nerd.

Okay, got the disclaimer out of the way. Now, onto bigger things...

In order to prepare for my transition to veganism I've been checking out a lot of vegan blogs and websites to find some books to help me along the way. I'm looking for information on how to maintain a balanced diet, in addition to theories about decolonizing the Black body with a vegan diet, and Black women's experiences as vegans. I'd also like to hear more about queer vegan women of color and how their veganism intersects with other identities and challenges overlapping oppressions. I want to delve more into the political perspective of oppressed vegans going beyond the generic animal rights defense. There are a lot of people for which going vegan was a challenge personally, physically, socially, financially, and culturally just to name a few. I want to find out how folks handled those challenges and maintained their stance. To sum it up I'm in search of inspiration, motivation, and understanding.

On the Sistah Vegan blog (check the link on the sidebar) she talked about a few books she's been reading, in addition to the one she wrote herself. So I looked some of them up on Amazon and here's the list of what I ordered:

By Any Greens Necessary: A Revolutionary Guide for Black Women Who Want to Eat Great, Get Healthy, Lose Weight, and Look Phat


Grub: Ideas for an Urban Organic Kitchen


Sistah Vegan: Food, Identity, Health, and Society: Black Female Vegans Speak


Vegan Soul Kitchen: Fresh, Healthy, and Creative African-American Cuisine




Check the links and be on the look-out for book reviews!!!

Going Vegan: Part 1

Ok, so I've attempted to go vegan a few times before with rather limited success. I was vegetarian for about 6 years and for one reason or another fell off the wagon a few months after I moved to the Bay Area. I eat vegetarian most of the time, but I find myself eating meat at home when my housemates cook, and last-minute at the taco truck by my office when I'm between meetings/projects.

I've been learning more and more about the environmental, physical, social, and financial impact of the food I eat and the world food system as a whole. I want to simplify my diet, know more about where my food comes from, have less of an impact on the planet, and eat healthier in general.

I've always said I couldn't go vegan because I love chocolate, cheese, and icecream too much--plus I love to bake--but living in such a vegan-friendly area with so many food options really leaves me with no excuse. Plus my friend Moni is exploring going vegan right now so it'll be good to have some moral support.  So I'm gonna give it a go.

The last bits of meat I shall eat are the ones that are in my house: some salami and frozen ground turkey. I also have frozen talapia, salmon, canned tuna, some eggs, and dairy products, but I'm cutting out the meat first, then seafood, then eggs & dairy. I think it's better for me to cut back in phases, with the goal of being completely vegan by January 1st.

I'll be researching and posting links to other websites/blogs/vlogs as I go a long. As I progress I hope to connect with other people of color, working class folks, queers, and radicals that challenge the traditional image of vegans rich, skinny, white people. So here's one to start things off: Vegans of Color on WordPress.

I'll have some more thoughts & resources in the near future... :)

Ant Invasion!!!

I've got ANTS in the planter with my new sweet potato slips!!! Ahhhhh! I've been covering them with black plastic to hold heat and water in the soil and poked holes in it so the leaves from the slips could get sunlight (saw it on YouTube). When I lifted the plastic today one of the mounds that a slip is planted in was covered with ants!!!


I've googled it and determined that the best (and cheapest) solution for me will be to sprinkle some grits around. Apparently the ants are supposed to eat the grits (or cornmeal) and once it expands the ants explode. I just so happened to have some grits in my cabinet, so I'll sprinkle some outside in the morning before work and give an update later in the week.

Here goes nothing...

Late Bloomer

So I've been talking about it all summer, but I've finally taken the initiative and cleared out the huge planter box that I've got in lieu of a yard & am actually starting to plant stuff! 

What kind of planter am I working with?

It's untreated wood, 5' x 2.5' x 2'. It's raised off the ground, surrounded by chicken wire, and had ventilation/drainage holes in it.

What will I be planting?

Here's the roster for the planter: sweet potatoes, eggplant, sugar snap peas, and rosemary.

Why?

I bought a bunch of seeds earlier in the spring and just never put them to use. A few weeks ago, after I cleared out the first planter we've got (which is a bit smaller) my housemate planted mostly leafy greens & some herbs, in addition to some peas & carrots. I wanted to plant something more substantial though and have always LOVED sweet potatoes. I bought one from the store & after I forgot about it it actually started to grow slips on it's own, so I figured I could put them in the other planter & see what happened. The rest of the stuff I already had seeds for & just wanted to see what would happen if I did companion planting. Plus, I know peas go well with lots of things as they add nitrogen into the soil.

How?

As of now, I have added no compost or anything. If I do it'll be organic as I'm not a big fan of chemicals. So for the time being it's pretty much just dirt, water, & plenty of sunlight. 

I'm going to try to divide the planter in two so that the sweet potato vines don't take over everything. I'll do this by digging a trench to the bottom and inserting a piece of cardboard. It's simple enough & I don't have to go out & buy anything to do it.

I've got a few tools, and for the most part have just been using Google & YouTube to figure things out as I go...