Slow Food St. Louis

Slow Food St. Louis Logo
Originally uploaded by slowfoodstl

Last night, at the Joel Salatin lecture, I saw a table that advertised the St. Louis Slow Food group. I was intrigued, but they attracted a huge crowd, so I checked them out online.

Here is part of their mission:

Slow Food is an international, educational organization devoted to promoting fresh, local, and sustainably-produced food, biodiversity, and the preservation of food traditions, as well as celebrating the pleasures of the table.

Slow Food is a non-profit, eco-gastronomic member-supported organization that was founded in 1989 to counteract fast food and fast life, the disappearance of local food traditions and people’s dwindling interest in the food they eat, where it comes from, how it tastes, and how our food choices affect the rest of the world.

Slow Food is good, clean, and fair food. We believe that the food we eat should taste good, that it should be produced in a clean way that does not harm the environment, animal welfare, or our health, and that food producers should receive fair compensation for their work.

They have a lot of events, including an upcoming trivia night that I'm sorry I'll have to miss. Through October 15th, membership is whatever you can afford.

Looks like an intersting bunch, so I did join. You can, too, at http://www.slowfoodstl.org/ .

The Meat You Eat

Can you say passionate?
Originally uploaded by greenzabiha

About a month ago, my husband and I read "The Omnivore's Dilemma," by Michael Pollan. A big part of the book focused on Joel Salatin, owner of Polyface Farms, a holistic farm that raises no-antibiotic, grass-fed, free-range beef, pork, chicken, and eggs.

Last night, we were fortunate enough to be able to see Salatin speak at Webster University in St. Louis. His methods are not only fascinating, they're very scientific. Instead of using his brain to create more modern machinery to produce larger and more profitable animals, he uses his extensive knowledge of biology to create a sustainable method of rotating animals across his large farm in a way where they support each other.

We met some great people while we were there, including a family from Kansas City whose 14-year-old has decided to become a farmer, and talked his parents into getting a flock of chickens, which he raises Joel's way. His hopes are to try a cow next - but his mom said that their suburban yard is too small, "We'd have to move!"

If you're in the St. Louis Area and want to dip into the sustainable, grass fed, non-antibiotic, grass-fed pool, definitely get out to Benne's farm in St. Charles. Ron Benne has been featured in Sauce Magazine twice, as the "Pillar of Sustainability."

10 Tweeps That I Love to Twead!

she's baaaack!!!
Originally uploaded by bvshort

These ten Tweeps are people that I love to see Twittering....

1. Mignon Fogarty - Also known as "Grammar Girl," she has all the answers to your grammar issues. Whether your problem is with apostrophes or tenses, you should be following @GrammarGirl.

2. Best Tweet - "Museum for the Art of Micro-Elegance." You don't have to worry about missing the most insightful or funniest tweets on Twitter...@BstTwt does it for you...and he does it very well!

3. Demi Moore - If you like following celebs, you just can't get more real than @MrsKutcher. Whether she's in a limo, or reading a book, she tells it like it is.

4. Bonnie Burton - A blogger from San Francisco, she is an editor/writer for Lucasfilm. She has a quick wit and is very generous with really fun replies to tweets. For a light, fun and funny Tweep, follow @bonniegrrl.

5. Chaviva - She calls herself a "Blogging Jewess." She has a very interesting and busy life, and tweets it with finesse! Don't miss @kvetchingeditor.

6. Wendi Lynn Makeup -- A makeup artist on the TV Show "Heroes," she also works for other interesting Hollywood shows in her spare time. Not only does she give inside information into your favorite Monday night program, she has an interesting and fun life of her own! Twitter @wendilynnmakeup.

7. Jason Tusman - If you love a dry, dry, dry wit, you'll love @whoisJason. He's also an incredible photographer with a fantastic online gallery at http://www.jasontusman.com/ .

8. Bill Mitchell - An expert on many facets of technology - and life! If you have a question, go to @askbillmitchell.

9. Susan Iskiwitch - She's a "digital strategist" with a fresh outlook on everything in her life. She tweets about PR, marketing, technology, and life in St. Louis. Follow @susanisk.

10. Wil Wheaton - My first celebrity tweep, he's not just Wesley Crusher...he's an author, a sports fan, a father...he's just this guy, you know? Whether you're a Star Trek fan or not, you'll enjoy @wilw.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (review)

jekyll-hyde
Originally uploaded by Walwyn

This afternoon, we went to see "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" at the Repertory Theater of St. Louis.

The star of the show was definitely the set design. It was a beautiful two story set with stairs coming down both sides, and intense red lights which added quite a bit to the story, almost as if it was another actor. For instance, during one of the murder scenes, when the body fell to the floor, the red lights represented the blood spreading across the stage, which looked very modern and realistic.

Another very different method that was used was to have Mr. Hyde played by all of the supporting actors. This is very hard to describe, but it was extremely effective. It showed not only the unattainable nature of the posession by Mr. Hyde, it gave the character so many other facets than just one actor can provide.

The best actor of the day, in my opinion, was Scott Schafer. He went from role to role to role, and I wouldn't have even known it except for the fact that I read in the program that he played five main roles...not minor roles, not small roles...main roles. I would love to meet him in person, because I'm sure he wouldn't look at all like any of the characters he played. He was definitely the highlight of the cast.

All in all, this was an excellent play and well-deserving of presentation at the Rep. It still has another weekend, so if you have time to get out there, I highly suggest it.

Identifying and Categorizing Goals

File
Originally uploaded by missouri_gal

I spent some time yesterday working out of "You Can Do It!" The first badge is about dreaming and identifying dreams. I spent a lot of time listing dreams that I knew about, dreams from when I was a kid that never materialized, and things that I knew I could do but never did.

I narrowed it down to 30 things, and matched them up with badges in the book, if possible. I organized them by how long it would take to do them, the effort it would take, and category.

Did I mention how much I love Excel?

I worked on a few of the initial steps of some of the badges - photography, taking care of my health, planning a party, learning a language and playing an instrument. The first steps are easy - mostly just identifying the goal. The next steps will be tougher!

You can do it!

Under Bridge
Originally uploaded by missouri_gal

I am starting to work on "You Can Do It!," by Laura Catuzzi Grandcolas. It's a series of 60 badges, in the same vein as scouting badges, but it's for adult women.

The first badge is about exploring and identifying your dreams, in order to even know which badges to work on next. Most of the things I've written down so far are dreams that I know I have, there haven't really been any surprises, but I have a few more exercises to go.

My plan is to blog the whole book, but I've planned to blog all of something before, and rarely get past a few entries. Perhaps this will be different. I am already way ahead on my New Year's Resolutions!

The London Tea Room

The London Tea Room
Originally uploaded by jricker

It was a rainy, chilly, English...er, St. Louis morning when our St. Louis Tea Meetup group visited the London Tea Room. Despite the weather, the tea room was bustling with a very diverse crowd of patrons.

The atmosphere is stately, yet cozy, with a nice mix of glass and wood tables, as well as hardback and cozy chairs. Whatever your seating pleasure, they have you covered.

The main counter is fronted with a full case of quiches, pastries, cakes, brownies and, of course, scones. A bounty of teas fill the backboard, which proudly displays the moniker, "THE LONDON TEA ROOM."

Of course, we started off with tea. The menu of beverages is overwhelming for the casual tea drinker. Be sure to read all of the clever descriptions - you won't be sorry. I had previously tried the Monk's blend, and was going for the Fifth of November blend, only to find out that it had been sold out for the day.

Our waitress, Amanda, came to the rescue like a pro. She offered to make a blend of Organic Vanilla and a dash of Oolong, which would give sweet vanilla taste with a smoky touch. Bingo! I did tell her that the owners should add this as "Amanda's Blend" on the menu, and by the time I left, she had already made the same for another happy customer. It was so good, I'd definitely order it up front next time.

To eat, I went for "The Croque Monsieur," which is hard to say but, oh, so delicious to eat. It's basically a smoked ham sandwich on their pugliese bread. Add both muenster and gruyere cheese, and you have a delightful - and very large lunch.

Last time I was there, I had the Apple and Brie sandwich on the same type of bread. It was slippery, but something very different for the vegetarian appetite.

Dessert was a difficult choice, but definitely try one of the cakes. They had a citrus an poppyseed that I wish I had tried, but I went for the carrot cake and I was not disappointed. Each of my lunchmates had a dessert, and they were so large that not one of us could finish ours, and we are no amateurs when it comes to finishing desserts.

If you're in the mood for shopping, you can find many English treats to take home with you, from Cadbury chocolate to Marmite. I only recommend one of them. You guess which.

If you're down by the City Museum, definitely stop in for lunch or just a snack, and don't forget to pick up some tea to take home!

Visit http://www.thelondontearoom.com/ for directions.