Change the World Wednesday – 2nd May

3:30pm…

Coffee No. 2…

Need more coffee! BRB

Coffee No. 3!

I have had a terrible day. Started off by almost over sleeping, panic to get to work. Got there with minutes (2) to spare. I normally don’t sleep more than the first 5 or 6 hours, but last night I slept seven and a quarter. Home again by 10:30. E-mails and the like, then I needed a nap. I felt so tired. My nap extended to three hours. Hence, I am here and the day has gone… whoosh! Went.

Last week’s CTWW Update:

My cayenne pepper is thriving, my parsley seeds are still an attempt. Nothing yet.

I have these outside my bedroom window, they need a feeder

Reading through some of the CTWWers from last week, two things happened. First, I was made to feel a twinge of guilt. All last year, when I had passionfruit vines growing everywhere, I had intended to put a feeder in place for the hummingbirds. They are such a beautiful bird. I never got around to it. Then I read this… by Ann.

Chard by the Yard, so poetic… WTF is chard? I have often heard reference to this apparent vegetable, but despite being a chef, I have never known what chard is. My interest piqued, I donned my thinking cap and off I went on my tangent once again. Tangents are so much more fun than bicycles, much more adventurous. You have to keep on your toes when going off on a tangent because they don’t have a seat like a bicycle.

Silverbeet

The upshot was, that I discovered chard.

Chard = silverbeet, the vegetable of my childhood. The vegetable that grew prolifically (word used to assure SF that it is a real word) in our vegetable garden. It often fell to me through the winter months to don (I’m doing a lot of ‘donning’ today) my gumboots (Wellingtons, galoshes for those who who do not understand the nuances of NZ English) and tramp through the winter mud to cut the crinkled broad fleshy leaves for dinner.

So, a mystery was cleared.

CTWW can be so informative.

I must comment on Small Footprint’s admission. “There’s just something wonderful about getting one’s hands in the soil…” There’s a reason for that. There’s a reason that one gets a good feeling with one’s hands in the dirt. It’s the ‘cow poo effect’. Yes, you read right… cow poo! I posted on this some weeks ago on Make you Fink on Friday, go on hop on your tangent, I’ll wait here until you get back.

Ah, back already, let’s continue, shall we?

So, did you find cow poo interesting?

Gardening, nature rambles, farming and stuff feel good because of cow poo.

This week’s CTWW:

It’s one of my ideas from waaaaay back.

So, I’m not really going to participate. I’m going to sit here and see what ideas you guys come up with.

This week, consider Eco-friendly Grilling/BBQing. Please share all your ideas for cooking outside. Here’s a hint … Charcoal Briquettes are not necessarily Eco-friendly. Need another hint to get going? Check out this POST.

Or … If you don’t use a grill, please talk about other Eco-friendly ways to enjoy food outdoors. For example, consider picnics, parties, cooking over a campfire, etc.

I even hate the white ones

My main idea was that I don’t use fire lighters, those little black bricky things or those horrid little green greasy cubes to light my BBQ. I consider them a waste; a waste of time, a waste of resources and they’re expensive.

Who doesn’t have an old cardboard box around home? You, know the kind made with brown corrugated cardboard. Rip up a side into palm sized pieces, make a nest in the bottom of the ‘barbie’ (no, not the doll, your daughter would have a fit – it’s Australian and NZ slang for a BBQ), put on some smaller choice pieces of charcoal, and light. Then feed on bigger bits of charcoal. Simple.

The end result:

Perfect pork – The secret’s in the sauce

Now, what ideas are you all going to come up with?

…my coffee went cold. One of the perils of going off on a tangent.

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