Edible Gardens

I like gardening - it's a place where I find myself when I need to lose myself. - Alice Sebold

Edible Cities is a new book about gardening in unusual urban spaces. New to me that is. It is out in a paperback edition.

You can have fresh Herbs, Fruits and Vegetables without pesticides and with fabulous flavor. You can have them if the only space you have to garden is a sunny window, a wall, a balcony or an abandoned building next door.

Trust me, your own homegrown Oregano will have a flavor that is intoxicating. Fresh or dried, your Oregano will surpass any dusty commercial pulverized Oregano you can buy in the supermarkets. I thought I did not like Oregano. And then I grew and dried my own.

Did you know that it is easy to grow Mushrooms at home? Oh the possibilities are many and fascinating.

In side the book you will find:

• Principles of permaculture
• Worldwide examples of urban gardening projects
• Ideas for flats and balconies
• Green roofs
• Vertical gardening and urban beekeeping
• Guerrilla gardening and successful community projects
• Illustrated practical techniques with clear instructions

Scorzonera

A few plants that will grow in a sunny window:

Watercress (Nasturtium officinale)

Mustard cress (Lepidium sativum)
Swiss chard (Beta vulgaris ssp. vulgaris)
New Zealand spinach (Tetragonia tetragonoides)

Parsley (Petroselinium crispum)

Peppermint (Mentha piperita)

Lettuce (Lactuca sative)

Scorzonera (Scorzonera hispanica)

Arianna is a Big Dumb Banana

UPDATE:
I wrote the article below in October 2010. All hail the Goddess Karma. Things are not looking good at HuffPo.

While there’s no way to confirm hard numbers, it seems thousands of users if not more, are leaving the Huffington Post (also known as HuffPost) and its previously robust community because of the newly introduced comment system. By Zachary Stieber, Epoch Times | December 15, 2013

I despise censors and censorship. Free speech is a basic human right safeguarded by the Constitution of the USA. I have always been impressed by the Constitution.

The Huffingon Post censorship is capricious and rude. Discussion is controlled to a fare-thee-well. A post may appear, then disappear, then reappear again or never be published at all. Those who would like a thorough discussion of egregious HuffPo censorship should go to this site:

http://reddogbear.blogspot.com/2010/05/free-speech.html

The Huffington Post employs a robot to censor public discussion. Management claims the CensorBot can even detect sarcasm. A partnership has been formed to sell the CensorBot technology to others. I have since writing this learned IT is called "content analysis."

I am going to discuss one discrete part of the censorship that troubles me. HuffPo's account of the censorship on the site purports to be benign and limited. We shall see.

I created a test entitled HuffPo Consumer Community Moderation and Censorship Test. I operated the test on their own social network discussion pages. I alerted their Moderators to what I was doing, or tried to.This test was conducted during the flaming controversy about Dr. Laura using The N Word. The results were fascinating to me, at least.

Test #1
I posted a quotation from James Baldwin in the thread about race and language. The quote comes from the introduction to The Fire Next Time, a seminal book about race relations in America. In the Introduction, James Baldwin is explaining why he wrote the book dedicated to his beloved nephew.

This sentence is one of the most well known introductory sentences in American literature. There is no better indictment of using The N Word than this sentence. James Baldwin does not make it through the CensorBot. The problem? In the quote James Baldwin uses a word the CensorBot does not like. How can you have a reasonable discussion when things you post that are relevant and poignant are censored? Here is the quote:

"You can only be destroyed by believing that you really are what the white world calls a 'nigger.' I tell you this because I love you, and please don't you ever forget it."

In Arianna's World, James Baldwin is not allowed to say that about race and racist language because The CensorBot does not like it. Say what?

Test #2
I posted two songs from Hair. For those who don't know the musical, it was a work of art that was a direct response to the civil rights struggle and racism. I will post the two songs below.

Black Boys is one part of a two part piece. Black women sing about how beautiful white men are, and then white women sing about how beautiful black men are. A trio of white women sing and dance:

Black boys are delicious
Chocolate flavored love
Licorice lips like candy
Keep my cocoa handy
I have such a sweet tooth
When it comes to love
Once I tried a diet
Of quiet, rest, no sweets
But I went nearly crazy
And I went clearly crazy
Because I really craved for
My chocolate flavored treats
Black boys are nutritious
Black boys fill me up
Black boys are so damn yummy
They satisfy my tummy
I have such a sweet tooth
When it comes to love
Black black black black
Black black black black
Black boys

First, the song was censored by the Bot, which I think marked it as needing human intervention. A human then decided that it was not racist and the song reappeared.

The second song was Colored Spade. There is no song that indicts white racism in America that is more scathing. Sometimes humans will pass on something the CensorBot does not like and posts can appear, disappear and reappear in HuffPo Land. This song was censored completely and never appeared at all. Go to the link to hear the song:

I'm a
Colored A nigger
A black nigger
A jungle bunny
Jigaboo coon
Pickaninny mau mau
Uncle Tom
Aunt Jemima
Little Black Sambo
Cotton pickin'
Swamp guinea
Junk man
Shoeshine boy
Elevator operator
Table cleaner at Horn & Hardart
Slave voodoo
Zombie
Ubangi lipped
Flat nose
Tap dancin'
Resident of Harlem
And president of
The United States of Love
I said President of
The United States of Love
(and for dinner at the White House you're going to feed him:)
Watermelon
Hominy grits
An' shortnin' bread
Alligator ribs
Some pig tails
Some black eyed peas
Some chili
Some collard greens
And if you don't watch out
This boogie man will get you
Booooooooo!
So you say.

Evidently, in HuffPo Land, it is okay to fuck black men but you should not let them tell how it feels to be the fuckee. One more test to go.

Test #3
I posted this poem, author unknown but believed by some to be a child. The poem is taught in Black Studies courses in college. The poem is a wry and potent indictment of racism IMO. It was censored entirely by HuffPo:

When I was born, I was black.
When I grew up, I was black.
When I get hot, I am black.
When I get cold, I am black.
When I am sick, I am black.
When I die, I am black.
When you were born, You were pink.
When you grew up, You were white.
When you get hot, You go red.
When you get cold, You go blue.
When you are sick, You go purple.
When you die, You go green.
AND YET YOU CALL ME COLORED?
- by an Anonymous pupil of King Edward VI School, Birmingham, UK.

Conclusion
If you go to the Huffington Post to discuss politics and culture because of Ariannna Huffington's media reputation as a progressive populist, you will be defrauded. No such discussion can take place.

I know image creation and misrepresentation-not-quite-illegal is the behavior du jour of the Effete Elite in America these days; I do not have to like it. Or take it. God bless the InterNet. Where else are you going to go to complain?

A New Way to Play Botticelli with UPDATES

This photograph so reminds me of Botticelli. What do you think? I think a new growth in Feminist thought and political action is a good thing. For more photographs of FEMEN protests, go to the links below:

La Primavera by Sandro Botticelli 

I myself have never been able to find out precisely what feminism is:  I only know that people call me a feminist whenever I express sentiments that differentiate me from a door mat or a prostitute.  ~Rebecca West, "Mr Chesterton in Hysterics: A Study in Prejudice," The Clarion, 14 Nov 1913, reprinted inThe Young Rebecca, 1982

http://www.buzzfeed.com/gavon/the-best-of-femen-nsfw

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FEMEN

http://www.ehow.com/how_2103828_play-botticelli.html

UPDATE 2: 
Some Russians are torturing and murdering LGBT and/or taking their children. All of this so that some male Russians can prove they and Putin are not wusses in the worldwide who-has-got-the-biggest-dick contest. It is not working. No matter what Putin does now, he looks like an anus to somebodys around the world. .

Translation is "Fuck you, Putin" as far as I can make out. Second that emotion. It seems the women of Femens have the biggest dicks worldwide, metaphorically speaking of course. If a native speaker sees this and can give me a better translation, please do so.

UPDATE 1: 
I wrote this in September of 2012. The FEMEN movement just keeps growing. I must be getting old. I am not sure if these young women are foolish or brave. I will go with impossibly brave. They have a new branch in Turkey. Turkey.

. . . nobody gives you power.  You just take it.  ~ Roseanne Barr

Way to go, Larry Farnese and Matt Bradford! Now get to work, my fellow FemiNazis. Fly! Volunteer! Vote!

Larry Farnese

All this good work for women and their children and Farnese is sexy too. I like him. The photograph comes from the Philadelphia Magazine profile. Photograph by Ben Leuner.

And Rep. Bradford and his Family are the very image of a happy wholesome American Family. Mrs. Bradford is a hottie. I tip my Red Hat to you courageous sensible people.

Ensuring safe access to health-care facilities: 
State Sen. Larry Farnese (D-Philadelphia) served as a volunteer clinic escort before joining the senate, so he has particular insight into the harassment that occurs outside clinics. He’s preparing to introduce SB 1208, a bill that would “enact a statewide buffer zone outside health-care facilities located in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.” The intention is to create a 15-foot buffer zone around driveways and entrances to health-care facilities.

State Rep. Matt Bradford (D-Montgomery), sponsor of the house companion bill, HB 1891, emphasized that the bill was “content neutral,” meaning that it would apply to all health-care facilities, not just those offering abortion services. “While everybody is entitled to their personal beliefs, people should not be allowed to interfere with the rights of others by blocking [them],” he said."  - from RHRealityCheck.org. .

Editor's Note: Stalking is a crime.

Rep. Matt Bradford and Family

My Warmies, My Dog and Me

There is a way to stay warm in Winter, indoors and out. That way is wearing layers of clothing. And never forget your hat.

Nevertheless, layers are a good thing because they trap air in between them, which acts as an insulator for heat. And they can be put on and taken off depending on the varying situations  - Alok Jha, How to Dress for Antarctica

I am not dressing for polar regions. I am a Holiday Inn kind of girl. I do not camp out. A dog showed up at my house one day, fully grown, and now she is my Baby. I like to go outside and walk the dog in the snow. And I consider the weekday one mile walk to the post office part of my plan to stay healthy and active.

Layering your clothing is a tried-and-true way to maximize your comfort in the outdoors. The beauty of this simple concept is that it allows you to make quick adjustments based on your activity level and changes in the weather.

Each layer has a function. The base layer (against your skin) manages moisture; the insulating layer protects you from the cold; the shell layer(outer layer) shields you from wind and rain. You simply add or subtract layers as needed.

For a deeper understanding, read on.

I write this for all the Folks like me who walk their dog in the snow. Now you know how to keep from shivering. I write this to introduce CuddlDuds warmies. I wear them. I write this because I love my dog. Dogs are good people. They need lots of exercise. This post was created in partnership with eAccountable. All opinions are my own. Let it SNOW!

Political Signs - December 2013

Tis the season to be political. Happy Holidays!

Christmas should be about politics and not presents, according to a new study into the meaning of Christmas.

The author of a new report, The Politics of Christmas, Dr Stephen Holmes said “Our modern view of Christmas is largely a Victorian invention, thanks to the imagery within Charles Dickens’ tale A Christmas Carol, and bears little resemblance to the story as told in the gospels. The Christmas story is intensely political, with St Matthew and St Luke focusing their sights on firm questions of economic exploitation, imperial oppression, social stigma, and petty tyranny..”

Click Me!

If you think this is rude, just google "naked Santa images" or "naked Sarah Palin" and you will see I have been relatively polite and restrained. 

"Woman is the nigger of the world." - Ono/Lennon with UPDATE

Update: The Roman Catholic Bishops idea of social justice is nowhere to be found where women and their children are concerned. How many women will die or be tortured in Roman Catholic hospitals? This kiddy-raping woman-killing stuff they do is thought to be moral? God bless the ACLU.

A Michigan mother-of-two has claimed a Catholic hospital could have killed her after it forced her to suffer through a painful miscarriage at 18 weeks because it doesn't believe in abortion. Tamesha Means, 30, of Muskegon, with the help of the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit Friday against the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops regarding treatment she allegedly received at Mercy Health Partners hospital in December 2010. Then 27, the suit claims Means visited the hospital - the only one in her county - three times after her water broke some five months early. Mercy Health Partners is part of Trinity Health, a Catholic-run medical group that prohibits abortion in its hospitals. - By HELEN POW

Update: A Catholic hospital has argued in a wrongful death lawsuit that a fetus is not a person. Just let that sink in for a moment.

A beautiful woman has died in agony in the service of a Catholic dogma. A dogma that the Roman Catholic Church itself was willing to repudiate . . . for money. She was not a Catholic. She miscarried and made the mistake of going to a Catholic hospital.

My indignation response has been triggered so often of late that I cannot feel indignation anymore. This scares me. I am beyond wanting to hurt Forced Birthers. I am likely to stomp somebody. The State of Ohio is working on passing an abortion law just like the Irish law that killed this beautiful woman.

I need to go and find a nice safe place to decompress. Someplace where I will not be hurt for being a female. I just do not know where that place might be.

It’s time to abort the Catholic Church

Bloody butchers and pious toads who mask their medieval ignorance with a pretense of charity and care; it’s long past time to end the illusion and recognize the barbarism of the church. Shut ‘em down.

The latest victim in over a millennium of Catholic abuse is Savita Halappanavar, a young woman who was 17 weeks pregnant when her condition began to deteriorate. She went to a Catholic hospital, a fatal mistake.

Rest in Peace, Ms. Savita. I pray that you are the last woman who dies because of the depraved indifference of a nation (Ireland), the Roman Catholic Church and the Morals Police simply because you are a woman.