Archive for the 'Food' Category
June 10th, 2010 by Mike Redding
Truthfully, before I met Anna I didn’t really give much thought to household cleaners, lawn fertilizers and organic food.
But I have a cultural detachment from such things. I was raised in the 1960s and the only chemicals I was exposed to inside our home was whatever is in Ajax, and my dad’s Sir Walter Raleigh cigarette smoke. I was also exposed to steel mill soot spewing into the skies above the “Steel Valley” in Northeastern Ohio. How that affected me is unknown at this point.
All this other stuff, all these chemicals in cleaners, leaching out of plastics, the hormones fed to chickens and cows and the powerful modern pesticides being used on our crops, are new to me.
How is going organic affecting me? Well, it’s annoying NOT to have the greenest most perfect lawn in the neighborhood. I’m learning to live with weeds. My mother is Italian and makes the finest pasta and meatballs anyone I know has ever had. Her recipe calls for cans of strained tomato sauce which back in the day were just metal… but today are internally coated with plastic containing Bisphenol A (BPA). My pasta sauce tastes different now because I’m using different ingredients. But I miss that familiar, comforting taste. I don’t have all the bleaching cleansers available to combat grime in the crevices of our bathrooms. But my wife has taken over that now so score one for me!
Another affect is I sleep better. I do. I sleep better because I know my baby boy is getting the best shot a a healthy life. I don’t know what is causing all the increased diseases and disorders in our children. I’m not smart enough to add it all together. But even my limited mind tells me that there MIGHT be a microscopic connection between all these hormones and chemicals and pesticides and what’s happening to our children.
It’s not the 1960s anymore. We had three TV channels, no video games, one phone for the whole family and it was screwed to a wall in the kitchen, I walked to school and church so I only rode in a car for big trips to see relatives or vacations, we never fertilized our lawns or gardens and the list goes on and on.
Kids today are not living the way I lived. I had lead paint. They have poison coming at them from a 100o sources.
Is it all bad? Heck no. My oldest brother died at three from leukemia 11 years before I was born. He died because that was 1949 when they put you on a morphine drip and watched the cancer slowly kill you. Today, survival rates for children are as follows:
Acute lymphocytic leukemia 90.9 percent for children under 5
Chronic lymphocytic leukemia 78.8 percent
Acute myelogenous leukemia 60.2 percent for children under 15
Chronic myelogenous leukemia 53.3 percent
In the late 1940s Leukemia was like getting a death sentence. There have been amazing medical advancements and astonishing technological breakthroughs transforming the lives of today’s youth. But that’s only half the story.
The other half is a mystery. We don’t know what has caused the huge jumps in Autism and many other developmental disconnects in our children.
So until we get our arms around the dark side of all our modernism, I’m going organic and staying there… MR
June 8th, 2010 by Anna Redding
Now, I am not much for granola, hairy armpits or wearing clothes that were better left in the 70s… but if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em…. ‘cept for the un-necessarily excessive body hair and hemp moo-moos. If given a choice and a big fat wallet, I am going Jimmy Choo over Birkenstock.
I feel like I have been through an all out mommy assault. First, the new enormous study that is showing a link between pesticides and ADHD in children (the suspects are contaminated fruits, veggies, chemical laden front yards, etc.) rocked my world. Then CNN’s medical unit filed a report about toxins making it into the womb (suspects include household cleaning chemicals, air pollution, beauty products, personal care products, etc.). The concern is that the chemicals are interrupting brain development and the way our hormones function… two areas I really don’t want tinkered with. And I can’t leave out the fact that there is BPA in some of our canned food and drink containers.
Then the Gulf… It makes me absolutely sick that we are poisoning our oceans. So without getting on a soapbox. I’ll just tell you about the changes I am making ASAP… it’s not perfect, but I feel much better.
1) Household chemical cleaners are OUT – I clean with vinegar, lemon and baking soda… and everything is just as clean, even the bathtubs (though it does require more elbow grease). I am also dusting and sweeping as often as I can, research suggests that many of these chemicals from fire retardant furniture, building materials, etc. settle into the dust. Upside? Mopping with vinegar and water really makes your floors shine! And smell like a house salad!
2) Shoes stop at the front door. No more tracking in pesticides and fertilizers from the great outdoors, mainly because as I write this Crowley is rolling on the floor and he will literally lick the floor a couple times today.
3) All organic diet. And as local as possible. First thing we’ve noticed.. the flavor of organic meat is much stronger and better. Plus supporting local farmers and farmers doing the right thing is fulfilling.
4) No canned foods of any kind. The BPA in plastic bottles is also lining some of our cans.
5) For Baby, we try homeopathic first… such as teething tablets. This, after the second Tylenol recall (we had four bottles of recalled product).
6) Personal care products (shampoo, soap, lotions, conditioners, tooth pastes, etc.) – free of any ingredient that ends with the word ‘paraben’ Free of phthalates and BPA. I started this when I was pregnant and am very glad I did.
7) No chemical fertilizer on our plants or lawn. This was hard for Mike but he’s 100% on board.
With every passing moment, I am getting closer to an anti-Made in China kick when it comes to toys. First of all, Crowley only needs about a quarter of the toys he owns. All this plastic from China… that I am blindly trusting to be safe is creeping me out. Don’t get me wrong; I realize I cannot insulate him from every threat on this planet. And I know every generation of children is subjected to something poisoning them. Today’s children are under a chemical assault form a thousand sources. It’s incredible and sad. From medicine to baby bottles to toys to food to the chemical residue left on our bathtubs.
I can do a better job if I just pay attention and work a little harder. It’s not a perfect system but it is a better one for me… Anna
July 22nd, 2009 by Mike Redding
Where to go… What to do… Who to smell…
DESTINATION: Isle of Palms, Mt. Pleasant, SC.
[For SASTP readers Sue Tanner, Aunt Mel and Nancylynn who wrote in and asked what I do when travelling to Isle of Palms area.]
I have a gem for you today and any time you visit the Isle of Palms & Mt. Pleasant, SC, area.
If you’ve never been, entire books have been written about what to do in and around Charleston, SC. I could write one myself. Oh, wait. I am writing one. Ha ha ha, silly me. Whew! I kill myself. (Okay I’m done fake laughing.) What follows will be one of the “hidden gems” from that book about “Where to go… What to do… Who to smell” in the Carolinas.
I could give you 20 great things to do on this side of the Cooper River. But for our purposes here today I narrowed it down to just one, “You have to do this!”
Here’s how I picked that one thing. Very scientific… I posed myself a simple question, “If you gave me just one night in the Isle of Palms-Sullivan Island area with my family what is the one thing I would be the most excited to show them?”
The answer jumped out at me: “The Wreck!”
How I found “The Wreck” is a story unto itself.
I had heard about it from a fellow traveler and a few locals. But no one could tell me the address. The best I got was, “It’s on the far side of Shem Creek near Magwood Shrimpers.” Great. Thanks.
I spent the next trip to Charleston trying to find “The Wreck.” At one point I was standing in its parking lot staring right at it. “Couldn’t be,” I thought. “Who would operate a seafood restaurant that has no sign of any kind and looks like an abandoned warehouse?”
If you're not sure you've found it, you found it! "The Wreck!"
I knocked on the door and no one answered so I left figuring I must have the wrong place. I later chased down a mailman and explained my dilemma. He led me right back to the gravel parking lot and that same ramshackle building next to the Magwood Shrimpers …at 106 Haddrell Street.
“The Wreck” is only open for dinner starting at 5:30 PM. Which explains why no one was there during the day. Why there is no sign is anyone’s guess. I asked the owner, Fred Scott, and he just shrugged. Fred is the man you want to smell in this story. “The Wreck”–though technically owned by his wife, Patricia–is run from stem to stern by Fred. You’ll likely find him at the host/hostess stand seating people.
In a minute I’ll answer the question on the tip of your tongue, “Why would anyone name their restaurant ‘The Wreck’”? But first let me explain the dining experience: plastic chairs, paper plates, a garden hose running to a sprinkler on the tin roof is the restaurant’s air conditioning, and none of this matters. In fact it only adds to the charm because Fred serves the freshest most delicious Low Country seafood you’ll ever eat. The dock a few feet away is lined with shrimp trawlers. Do the math.
Just a few hundred yards upstream from “The Wreck” closer to Coleman Blvd. are a handful of trendy chain restaurants on Shem Creek with real air conditioning, music and partying until the wee hours. These restaurants have neon signs and paved parking lots and are open for lunch even. But there’s only one “Wreck!” And once you’ve found it, you’ve found the buried treasure of Mt. Pleasant, SC.
So why? Why call it “The Wreck?” Well “The Wreck” isn’t its full name. Fred Scott’s restaurant is actually called, “The Wreck of the Richard & Charlene.” (Maybe there’s no sign because you can’t get the whole name on a sign.) Here’s the back-story… during hurricane Hugo in 1989 a trawler called the “Richard & Charlene” smashed onto the dock at 106 Haddrell Street in Mt. Pleasant. Fred Scott saw this as a sign from God. Don’t ask.
Shem Creek in Mt. Pleasant, SC, is home to "The Wreck" and "Magwood & Son" shrimpers.
I have a bonus for you! During the day you can buy fresh shrimp right off the boats next to “The Wreck” at “C. A. Magwood & Sons.” The Magwood boys haul in a fresh catch every day. Bring a cooler and some ice and take home as much fresh seafood as you can carry!
Here’s the info you need:
The Wreck of the Richard & Charlene
106 Haddrell Street
Mt. Pleasant, SC 29464
Phone 843-884-0052
http://www.wreckrc.com/home.html
Open seven days a week for dinners during the summer. Closed on Sundays & Mondays in the off-season.
IMPORTANT: “The Wreck” accepts cash and approved checks only. NO CREDIT CARDS!
C. A. Magwood & Sons Fresh Seafood
110 Haddrell Street
Mt. Pleasant, SC 29464
Phone 843-884-3352
July 17th, 2009 by Mike Redding
Come meet me and my wife, Anna, and our baby boy tomorrow (Saturday) morning at the Firefighter’s Pancake Breakfast in downtown Charlotte. Starts at 8 AM on The Square at Trade & Tryon. I expect we’ll arrive around 9 AM.
Your five bucks goes to help a great cause, “Firefighters’ Burned Children’s Fund.“ Enjoy some delicious pancakes and ooh and ahh over Lumpalicious! (I’m pathetic aren’t I?)
See you there… MR
Here are the details straight from the invitation:
8 AM on the Square at Trade & Tryon in the center of uptown Charlotte.
The Center City Green Market is proud to present our Firefighter’s Pancake Breakfast to benefit the Firefighters’ Burned Children’s Fund. This yearly favorite is back again. Charlotte Firefighters will be on site cooking delicious pancakes for only a $5.00 suggested donation, with all proceeds benefiting the Firefighters’ Burned Children’s Fund!
Reid’s Fine Foods is supplying all ingredients and equipment for the breakfast, our farmers are supplying our fresh blueberries and firefighters donate the labor for cooking so every penny goes to the Burned Children’s Fund.
Your $5.00 donation goes to help NC Firefighter’s Burned Children Fund. You will receive a pancake stack, your choice of toppings, juice and/or coffee. Tables will be available for guests to sit and eat at their leisure. There will also be “Big Red Trucks” on site.
The Firefighters’ Burned Children Fund is a non-profit organization developed by area firefighters to support burn survivors and to prevent burn injuries before they occur. The Firefighters’ Burned Children Fund promotes the involvement of fire departments and fire service organizations that are interested in working within their communities and with other participants of the Fund in reducing the number and the severity of burn injuries and fatalities. More information is available at www.ffbcf.org.
July 9th, 2009 by Mike Redding
Where to go… What to do… Who to smell…
DESTINATION: Carolina High Country – West Jefferson & Shatley Springs, NC
[For Sue Tanner who wrote in and asked what I do when I’m in Shatley Springs and West Jefferson, NC.]
If you’ve never been… these beautiful small towns are all the way up at the top left corner of North Carolina by Tennessee and Virginia. It’s truly gorgeous country. Blue Ridge Mountain peaks with sweeping farmland between them stretching out across curved valley floors. The South Fork of the New River zigzags its way through Ashe County joining the North Fork and becoming the New River proper. It’s an area I would call “unaffected.” It feels old and unchanged. I first saw the New River on July 30, 1998 when I was assigned to cover President Bill Clinton’s trip to Ashe County. The President stood in a long flat meadow near the river and proclaimed it an American Heritage River. I did my first Ashe County story in Todd, NC, that day as we traced the New River for several miles. It’s unusual in that it flows from south to north. Its waters eventually end up in the Ohio River and then on into the Mississippi and down to the Gulf of Mexico. It’s thought to be one of the oldest rivers on earth. It’s certainly one of the most beautiful.
I have two “must see-must dos” in the West Jefferson-Shatley Springs area (besides a heavenly float down the New River).
Idea #1:
Just 12 miles from West Jefferson down NC HWY 194 is the historic landmark “Todd’s General Store” in Todd, NC. It happens to be where my first Ashe County story started on July 30th, 1998. (About five or six years later we went back and did another story there about an amazing banjo player.) It’s a wonderful place to stop and smell some people!
Todd's General Store hasn't changed... ever!
They have storytelling on Tuesday nights and live bluegrass music on Friday nights. If you’re really lucky, you might be there for a Friday bluegrass night when my favorite person to smell in Ashe County strolls in to play. He’s a very special house painter by day and world-class picker by night. His name is Steve Lewis and he has won the National Bluegrass Banjo Picking Award. That means he’s the best in the country! He’s a legend in the North Carolina High Country.
Here’s the info you need:
Todd’s General Store (is just North of the Todd, NC, Fire Station)
3866 Railroad Grade Road
Todd, NC 28684
(336) 877-1067
Storytelling Tuesday nights start at 6 PM
Bluegrass Friday nights go from 6:00 to 9:15 PM
toddgeneralstore.tripod.com
Idea #2:
Visit the “Ashe County Cheese Factory” & Store in West Jefferson. They’ve remodeled the 75-year-old factory so visitors can watch the cheese-making process from behind glass. It’s fascinating. I was lucky enough to participate in the process from beginning to end. It’s fun and educational. I had no idea what goes into making a great cheese. I’m salivating right now thinking about the wheel of cheddar I brought back with me.
You should check their website for the “cheese making schedule.” They have busy seasons and times where they shut down altogether… like August.
But Sue Tanner is in luck! Sue wrote that she’ll be up there this Saturday, July 11th, which happens to be the last Saturday they’re making cheese this summer!
The cheese store (directly across the street from the factory) is open Monday- Saturday 8:30 AM – 5 PM all year long so no worries about being able to buy some of this delicious cheese.
Here’s the info you need:
Ashe County Cheese Factory
106 E. Main Street
West Jefferson, NC 28694
(800) 445-1378 or (336) 246-2501
ashecountycheese.com
I’m craving some cheddar now… MR
