Green Things

I am from the future, and this is what I drive. The Aptera 2e, folks.

Cleanliness is next to godliness, or All you’ll ever need to clean everything is Vinegar, Lemons and Baking Soda.

Once during college, some Christian yokel managed to cram a skinny pamphlet into my palm. Skimming over it later, I realized it was entirely useful. A how-to-guide for removing every stain imaginable. Unfortunately, I only recall one, how to get out blood stains, but to that, I add my list of non-toxic and vastly cheaper alternatives to packaged “green” cleaning products. Great if you have a dog that likes to lick every crumb and spilt drop off the floor….

Oh, and the punchline for this pamphlet was, How to remove the stain of sin. Of course, the only one who can remove that stain is—you guessed it—Jesus Christ our Savior.

Vinegar: cuts grease, removes mildew, odors, some stains and wax build-up. Dilute with equal part water and use to clean countertops, floors, sinks and tiling. Use full strength for toilet.

Lemons: cuts grease, pleasant smelling.

Baking soda: scours, deodorizes, softens water. Gets stains out of copper. Use with vinegar for tougher stains.

Kosher salt: scours, tougher on stubborn stains. Pour some on a lemon (I like to save the lemon rinds from juiced lemons specifically for this purpose) and cut right through tough stuck-on grease stains on pots, pans and stovetops. Also great for scorched coffee pots.

Remove fresh blood stains with full-strength hydrogen peroxide.

Extensive list of tips for a lot more stains here.

Seasons to come

December 31 gets all the hype. And all the anti-climatism. While drunken revelers stumbled into the new year, I'd already celebrated the underdog of holidays—the subtle sleeper of winter solstice. What once was only a minor blip on my radar now radiates a much keener hope that never fails to deliver. The hope of longer days, cold though they are. The hope of winter finally come and only spring to look forward to.

It's easier to stand the cold water if you're already in it. Not so, the dread.

Cast Iron (Wo)man

I have a serious love/hate relationship with my cast iron skillet. I love its evenness of temperature, ability to sear a steak like nobody's business, that it is non-toxic, non-stick, super inexpensive ($14) and it will probably last my lifetime with proper care.

The care constitutes all of the hate part. Proper seasoning of the skillet prevents the steel from rusting and keeps food from interacting with the metal (which could affect flavor, iron content, and corrode the metal if the food is really acidic, e.g., tomatoes). But its a multi-step process involving elbow grease, grease and hot water. And I'm still not sure if its safe to use butter (since it can go rancid).

Now if you are still using Teflon-coated cookware, please consider switching over. A NY Times article about unusual pets led me to dig deeper when it mentioned that fumes from a Teflon-coated pan can kill a bird. Pans can also cause flu-like symptoms in humans when heated at high temperatures (Wonder if my old roommate Tom is still frying meats in my old Teflon-coated wok that he pretty much ruined to flakes).

DuPont maintains that Teflon is completely safe and agreed in September 2004 to a $107.6 million settlement with residents of the communities around Parkersburg that is funding two major studies of C8's health impacts., DuPont could also be due for another $235 million payout for medical testing costs if a link to illness is proven. DuPont also installed treatment systems to get the chemical out of local water.

C8, a chemical used in the production of its cookware has been linked with severe birth defects
DuPont has a history of flouting safety regulations. Most recently "allegedly failing to provide information to the EPA about the health effects of a pollutant one of its plants spilled into drinking water." Nice job, guys, of course I trust your health claims!

I bought my skillet at my favorite local cookshop, the Brooklyn Kitchen. But really, you can find them at most well-stocked purveyors of kitchen goods.

Sources
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/4716.php
http://sundaygazettemail.com/News/200812050678
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/14/business/14shortcuts.html?pagewanted=print
http://www.tradingmarkets.com/.site/news/Stock%20News/2072815/

Christmas 2008

Fresh Bread!

Agriculturally yours....