update on scary legislation and rant

Well, an update on some of the scary legislation out there. It is a sad time for organic farmers, home gardeners, and all those who place a priority on health and freedom. Many of you out there may already know that HS 875's more evil brother, HS 2749, was pushed through the house. It actually did NOT pass the first time, so rules were changed to allow for a 51 member vote, rather than a 60 member vote, and it passed. Next, it will go to the Senate, and if it passes there, our rights to garden our own food, eat organically grown food, organically raised animal products, and non gmo foods will be gone. I have written to my states representatives, and I strongly urge all of you out there to do the same. I would also recommend that you learn to grow your food and begin to stock up on heirloom seeds, while still available.

Yes, I realize this sounds Orwellian and extreme. Sadly, it is the reality of the age we live in. Check it out if you don't believe me. It is all about profit, and personally I am not going to allow my personal health and freedoms to be violated in the name of profit without a fight.

I have said it before, but it bears repeating. It IS NOT HEALTHY to eat food that has been grown or raised with chemical fertalizers, pesticides, or has been genetically modified of raised on genetically modified food. It is not healthy to eat animal products that have been fed diets that they are not biologically supposed to eat. It is not healthy to ingest toxins into our bodies, EVER. It is NO COINCIDENCE that the rates of DIABETES, CANCER, HEART DISEASE, and OBESITY have NEVER been HIGHER. This is no accident. It is profitable to have a sick, unhealthy population. It won't do the makers of roundup (Monsanto) any good to have more and more people eating organic produce. It will not do the makers of insulin any good if people knew that they could possibly cure their diabetes. It would not do the meat industry any good if people figured out that meat (especially conventionally raised meat) is a huge health threat and quit consuming it. No, it would drive these folks out of business! A very good, informative documentary on all of this recently came out, called "Food, INC.". I would highly recommend it to every person in this country, as it sheds light on exactly where our food comes from.

Folks, the MOST IMPORTANT thing that you possess is your health. If you have health problems, or weight problems, it is NOT TOO LATE!! As long as you are breathing, you have the opportunity to turn things around. But explore and seek out ALL options and opinions. Consult with a Naturopath, a Homeopath, a Chiropractor, an Herbalist...not just an M.D. Learn about alternative cures. Once you find the right one, they work, I promise you, and without the side effects pharmacueticals cause. The information is out there, all over the place, go get it!! Become informed and mostly, TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR OWN HEALTH!! Because the government and the major corporations that are running the show do not want what is best for you, they are concerned only with the bottom line.

my love affair with herbs

Herbs, to me, have always had a sort of magical quality to them. Perhaps they evoke some distant, primal instinct, harking back to a time long ago when ancestors needed these little miracle plants for survival in a harsh world. Maybe I just love the tastes and smells of fresh herbs in my food and teas. For whatever the reason, I have been mesmerized by herbs and all of their many functions most of my adult life.

My love affair with these amazing plants began back in the early 90's when I went to visit a friend who was back in the states after moving to France. We met at her mother's townhouse, a shabby looking older building in a slightly run down part of town. You can imagine my shock when, upon entering, I was faced with a breathtaking, light-filled living room; soaring ceilings, beautiful furnishings, exquisite artwork. Yet, with all of this beauty, the most stunning feature of the room was the wall of floor to ceiling windows which looked out upon one of the loveliest herb gardens I had ever seen. As Lisa took me through this small grotto and pointed out each of the many herbs, I felt myself falling in love. Since that visit, I have had some form of herb garden, whether just a small container garden or a larger kitchen variety, in every place I have lived.

Back in the 90's, my ex husband and I purchased a large, older home in a lovely, well established neighborhood. The home had plenty of space, a beautiful, double sided stone fireplace, and large, arching mulberry trees. The one thing it didn't offer, however, was convenient access from the kitchen to the front or the back yards. The kitchen was tucked away in a corner of the house. As a solution to the dilemma of where to put the herb garden, I ended up having a door installed off the kitchen, opening up to the side yard. This served me quite well for the remaining 5 years in which I resided in that house. I grew everything from the basics: basils, parsleys, oregano, mint, thyme, dill- to strawberries, tomatoes, zucchini.

The house I inhabited when my children were very small was Spanish styled, with the entire house built around a center courtyard. This courtyard was flanked on the east side by the kitchen and breakfast nook, the north side wall was the living room, and the west side wall was the master bedroom. The south wall was the garage, with a narrow opening between the garage wall and the master bedroom wall which allowed for a gated entry to a charming little path which lead to another small garden area, which lead, through yet another gate, to a larger yard. This area was complete with a pool, a lawn, flower beds, and a gazebo. In the courtyard, we had all of the herbs that I needed for cooking, with the mint (as mint will) extending well past its borders and down the little pathway leading to the children's play yard and the other small garden. I didn't mind that wild mint, though, and will never forget the fragrance as I watered during the long, hot Texas summers while the children played amongst daisies that were as tall as they were.

After my divorce I moved into a pretty little townhouse with a nice view of a golf course. This was a time of my life, when, much like an adolescent, I was trying on different persona's, deciding who I was going to be for the rest of my life and exhilarated by the possibilities. During this time, I grew a small container herb garden on my patio, although as I write this I have to wonder: was I growing the herbs, or were they helping to grow me?

We are now in our 4th year in the house my husband and I bought together. A lovely home in which we have unleashed our creativity, passion for beauty, and love for all things do-it-yourself. A smaller house, yet a nice open floor plan, tons of windows, and 12 foot ceilings. Best of all, the kitchen/family room overlook a large backyard complete with a small pool, a lawn, full sun, and extensive garden beds. Since our first year here we have had a nice herb and kitchen garden right outside our door. This year, though, I was inspired to take the next step in my knowledge of herbs and all they can do.

I have always been very interested in herbalism. We are a family that has a passion for health and natural medicine, so it is quite logical that herbalism would call to me. I decided this year that I would begin to study it more seriously, and as I have began to delve into to this, I realize just how much I don't know, which pushes me to learn more. My daughter has taken an interest in it as well, and we have learned some basic remedies. This has also caused us to expand our herb garden by more than 4 times, boasting now well over 40 plants in our backyard alone (we keep plots in a community garden as well). This, in turn, has lead us to expand our culinary knowledge, as we have so many wonderful herbs- what to do with them all!? So, in the end, we have learned some practical remedies that we now use in our household, we have had some delightful new cuisine, we enjoy learning, cooking and eating together- all of this due to the remarkable, miraculous herb!