Tightening up on discarded waste!

Scene from South Park Season 14, Episode 10

A few days ago, I wrote a post concerning how much throwing stuff out drives me crazy. A friend of mine heard me talking about this and cautioned me to be careful. She said that’s the way many people who become ‘hoarders’ start out. I told her that I remembered a show done on South Park "Insheeption" about that. Pretty funny actually! But, very sobering too! So, perhaps I am walking a tightrope here, even though all I really want to do is become a more responsible citizen in the area of recycling. That’s a good thing, right?

Problem! Who's got a problem?

I think my ‘affliction’ with this area of recapturing used stuff began some years ago as an offshoot of my hobby in backyard gardening. While growing veggies for the table, I started a small compost pile and then watched in amazement as kitchen scraps turned into dark soil! At that point, I was hooked! I’ve been composting ever since and perhaps was ‘pre-infected’ with the idea. After all, composting is recycling on the most organic level, is it not?

Today, I like the challenge of making purchases at the grocery store last for more than just one use. Plastic bags have now been discarded in favor of paper, or better yet, for one of those canvas tote bags that I see other people beginning to use more and more often! (These days, I try and make sure to keep one in my auto for those times when I’m going to purchase a small amount of stuff). Otherwise, it's ‘paper please’ at the checkout counter from now on!

Well...at least the tray is made of paper!

This idea of reusing items that I purchase also extends towards products I select to take home with me. Whenever possible, I opt for glass containers over plastic. Failing that, I try and avoid anything that will end up at the transfer station and thus condemned to a landfill. Take TV dinners, for example. I try and purchase items like Aunt Jemima’s Scrambled Eggs and Sausage breakfast meal mainly because they use a paper tray. (Even thought the contents of this meal totally suck, they do have the right idea when it comes to packaging)!

What it all boils down to is choice. Even if scientists were to discover tomorrow that landfills are a ‘good’ thing, I would still be opposed to filling them up in the manner that we do. It sickens me that some of this crapola will still be hanging around when generation 20 is out walking the earth!

Adkins would have loved this!

The 'evil meat' is back there hiding among the good veggies!

Now, this being my millionth year of dieting, I’ve discovered that while a small amount of bread is important in any diet, you need to limit it if you want to lose weight! Those bad old carbs!

So saying, I have come up with a hamburger that is 'sans buns' and all the calories that go with them. This ‘bun-less’ hamburger meal is comprised of a small xxx gram all beef patty, steamed broccoli, carrots and a bit of  steam potato in place of the French Fries! Here’s the nutritional breakout:

Click to enlarge

At 423 calories this was definitely a filling meal, but as a result I should be able to avoid snacking during the afternoon hours. Because I’m using a salt substitute, the sodium comes in really low also. Actually, the only fly in the ointment is the high cholesterol level, but I figure that’s offset by the very low carbohydrate level. And keeping the carbohydrates down is what the Adkins Diet is all about!

Critique: Macaroni & Cheese!

With all those calories! This would be a good survival food!

While watching an episode of Glenn Beck on GBTV one afternoon, he made the remark that ‘everyone should stock up on Mac n Cheese’ or something to that effect. He was talking about the need for his viewers to ‘hoard food’ as a hedge against when the United States crumbles into pieces. Everyone, he maintains, needs to have at least a year’s worth of food on hand for the ‘hard times’ that are coming.

Is he right? I dunno. Perhaps. But, it got me to wondering why he mentioned this very common boxed meal by name? Personally, it’s be a long time since I enjoyed a dish that used to be a staple around my house. At half a buck a box, it’s relatively cheap and packs a wallop in the calorie department. (Something that would serve you well in a disaster, I guess).

So, for this critique, I decided to stay on the cheap side of things and go for a generic ‘Cheese and Mac’ boxed item I found on the shelves of my store. It’s branded ‘Always Save’ and is made by a company called Associated Wholesale Grocers (leastwise it’s distributed by them). 

After getting home, I got a pot and filled it with 6 cups of water as per the directions. This was brought to a boil and then I added the pasta and let it cook for about 8 minutes. (Important: Whenever I do pasta, I begin testing it a few minutes before the recommended time for proper doneness). I found 7 minutes on light boil to be about right! After draining off the water, I then added the packet of cheese mix along with ¼ cup of butter (half a stick) and ¼ cup of 2% milk. This was stirred with a fork and before my eyes, I had made a meal! Man, just feast your eyeballs on all that cheesy goodness!

Now before you dig in, understand that a serving is considered to be about 2.5 ounces of product. There are about three of these per box, so to make things simple just divide it into thirds. Note that this will work out well if you are feeding yourself and two kids. (Not so well if you have two kids and a significant other)!

In the top picture, I have about half a serving or 200 calories! Use the fork for comparison. Hmm, doesn’t look like much does it. And yet, a full serving is almost 400 calories! That’s the equivalent of eating a McDonald’s Double Cheeseburger! (Personally, I’d take the cheeseburger)! Anyway, let’s get the scoring done:

Box appeal:     5          Not real sure about those sliced tomatoes on the box!!

Reality:           6          No, it’s not rotting maggots. It just looks that way!

Cost:              8          Forty five cents won't break the bank! Go get some!

Texture:          7          Not bad – once you learn how to cook pasta! Duh!

Smell:             7          Who doesn’t like the smell of cheese?

Taste:             7          At first it’s great and then it becomes so-so…needs a side!

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Average:         6.7       OK! So, not a world class dish, but it was filling!     

Now for some bad news! My box informed me that this product is best consumed by Dec 15, 2012! Hey! That’s not very long. Also, if you ‘hoard’ this product; you better make sure to place it in an 'insect proof' container. Bugs can drill right throw paper in no time at all! Now, with that in mind, I plan to pick up a few boxes next time I go shopping. While Mac n Cheese will never make it to the culinary Hall of Fame – it is a pretty tasty addition to a regular meal, and no matter what, kids love it!

Author's note: The only issue I would have, for hording this product in times of trouble, is the need to have butter and milk on hand as necessary ingredients. Tough to do in a collapsed world!

GM announces car with a built in microwave!

What came as no surprise to auto industry insiders, GM has announced a new line of 'fully connected' vehicles that will not only offer all the conveniences of a home office, but that will now come equipped with the latest in kitchen appliances. Scheduled for release this fall will be in-dash microwave and portable refrigerators, so the busy motorist can pop in a frozen pizza while driving in to work! (Why, that should be such fun! What could possibly go wrong>)?

Also in the works for a possible 2014 release will be such futuristic luxuries as a built in port-a-potty in both the driver and passenger seats. According to the designers, when you feel the need to 'go' while on the 'go', a popup 'privacy partition' (patent pending) will encircle the passenger while leaving just enough room to see out! Not to be left 'behind', it's also rumored that BAJAJ AUTO has announced a full line of in-car washers and dryers for the man or women who want to look 'fresh' when they arrive at their destinations. 

Coming Next week! We are excited to be the first to cover the safe use of so-called 'pleasure devices' while traveling at high speeds!

Fast food, Sonic's Chicago Dog and all that extra trash!

For under four bucks there's not much that beats eating a Chicago Dog and fries from Sonics in my little town of Forsyth, Missouri. Eating one of these takes me back many years to when I lived and worked in a suburb of Chicago. I can still remember having to wait in a line for my food at one of those roadside joints that used to spring up in and around the Industrial Park where I worked. You'd get this little tray that barely was big enough to hold the dog and fries at the same time. And those fries, they were always limp and sprinkled with some kind of red pepper that gave them a special taste all their own! Back then, I would scarf both down in just a minute or so during my lunch break and would get back to work. That little tray and a napkin would be unceremoniously dumped into a waste can and forgotten.

Back in those days nobody really ever talked about recycling. Trash was trash and that was that! We had landfill space a plenty and the throw away society was just getting cranked up. I do remember that about the only thing that was recycled was those coke bottles that you could redeem for a couple of cents each. But, even those quickly disappeared when aluminum cans were introduced. Then plastic came into vogue and the dumping party was in full swing! Now, as I stare at the remains of my meal. This pile of trash that weighs about 66 grams. I'm once again reminded of a growing problem.

It's trash! These days, many of us still toss out an awful lot of solid waste (about 73%) which ends up in landfills situated all across the country. But, most of us will readily admit that the writing is now on the wall. even though there is still plenty of space left, it's still just a matter of time before recycling will become the law of the land, and not just a good idea. Also, it's worth noting that nothing we use is infinite in supply. Aluminum, steel, tin, glass, plastics and even paper are now routinely used and then reused again and again. Did you know that aluminum can be recycled at just 5% the cost of making it from raw ore? That's also true, to some extent, for just about anything made of metal, glass or plastic. So, if you're all for saving energy, this is one way to help!

Update: The cost of this meal went up almost 13% as of June 2012. What cost $3.76 is now $4.30!

Just a reminder everyone. The militia is still here!

Does Glenn Beck sponsor Home Made Energy Org?

There's an email being circulated around that purports to be sponsored by Glenn Beck. I'm going to say that no, he does not. This group has been around for some time now. They promise great savings on electricity by showing a homeowner how they can make their own solar cells so they can 'get off the grid' while saving tons of money.

Here's an example of what I found on the Complaints Board site about this company:

Posted: 2012-01-19 by

Jizze

This site is run by a new breed of thief interested only in your money and willing to do anything to get it.

Complaint Rating:

Homemadeenergy.orgCompany information:
Homemadeenergy.org
United States
homemadeenergy.org

Keep away from this site. It is run by a new breed of thief interested only in your money and willing to do anything to get it. Basically this man tells you that he can show you how to make solar panels from dirt, he then tells you to beg for damaged panels from your local authorities. Before you get to finish reading the e-book your computer resets and the e-book can no longer be found or accessed.

There were three more like this posted on the site.