Eating Fresh and Local is Good For You and Yours

I am really pressed for time this week, so I just wanted to give you a story that will tie is so very nicely with our talks about food. Michael Pollan has a follow-up to the Omnivore's Dilemma (totally great book FYI) called In Defense of Food. Take a listen and perhaps you will be inspired to eat better and locally!

Talk with you soon.

Water Water Everywhere, But For Some, Not Safe Enough to Drink

Tonight the selectmen are scheduled to discuss the proposed water towers that would be situated on the 128 cloverleaf. The towers are to aid the distribution of MWRA water to the towns in the area. I am sure that many of you may have thoughts on the proposal, so I just wanted to way in.

For those of you who didn't know, last year Reading changed the water supply of the town from our wells placed around the Ipswich watershed to MWRA which takes it water from the Quabbin and Wachusett Reservoirs. The decision to change to MWRA, in my view, was one of the best the town has ever made. Not only did the Ipswich not provide enough water for our town use, it had a negative impact upon the river ecosystem and in my opinion, it was only a matter of time before the water in our neck of the woods would suffer from the same fate as our neighbors in Woburn and Wilmington....well water contamination. Toxic plumes in underground aquifers do not adhere to town boundary lines.

Briefly, Woburn closed two of its wells in 1979 when it was found to be contaminated with a myriad of toxic chemicals. The damage was severe to the citizens of Woburn. I know that most of you have heard of the book and the movie, "A Civil Action", but perhaps you don't know the details of the incidents that took place. So here is a recap so eloquently detailed by in a speech by Gretchen Latowsky in 1998. She was a key participant in organizing citizens of Woburn to get some answers to why people were getting sick, very sick.

"What is the legacy of this industrial development, this progress that creates jobs and fuels the economy? Woburn has two federally designated Superfund hazardous wastes sites of approximately 350 acres each. It has over 100 smaller state designated Superfund hazardous waste sites. And, for 15 years people of Woburn received drinking water from a supply contaminated with volatile organic chemicals from improper and illegal hazardous waste disposal throughout the Aberjona River Watershed. The people of Woburn have suffered from significant and diverse health problems. The most notable was a cluster of cases of childhood leukemia that the US Centers for Disease Control deemed the most persistent cluster of childhood leukemia in the country. From 1964-1986 there were 28 cases of childhood leukemia, 16 children died, a rate four times the expected rate for a community of its size. In contrast to Woburn, the six communities that are its immediate neighbors had a rate ½ the expected rate. This tragedy, in one way or another, touched the lives of almost every family in the community. Studies have also shown that Woburn residents have suffered from increased rates of kidney and liver cancer, birth defects, and heart system, immune system, and nervous system disorders."

Yes, you did read that correctly 16 children died. For further reading in heartbreaking "real time" I highly recommend Charles Ryan's early investigative pieces from the Daily Times Chronicle. This should hit all of us like a ton a bricks and bring these events of the past directly into our present.

Currently, Woburn only receives a portion of their water from MWRA and operates wells around Horn Pond. The superfund sites are still not contained and now are in phase 2 of cleanup operations. You may recognize part of the location of the Industri-plex Site. It is where Target is located on Commerce Way.

These are and were our neighbors.

Now onto Wilmington and another contamination that impacts a municipal water supply. According to the January 30, 2008 Wilmington Advocate, "The Olin Chemical property was added to EPAs Superfund National Priorities List in April 2006. Contaminants found in the groundwater at the site include ammonia, chloride, sodium, sulfate, chromium, and N-nitrosodimethylamine. These chemicals were also present in several of Wilmington’s municipal drinking water wells at Maple Meadow Brook. In 2003, these wells were taken out of service."

Wilmington is now scrambling to provide their citizens with clean water from other towns as they were not able to quickly change to MWRA as Reading did. It is my understanding that Wilmington needed to add to its infrastructure in order to tap into the MWRA, which is why they have been digging up 129. As for the health impacts, their risks are not zero.

These too are our neighbors.

While the proposed towers may not have a direct impact upon Reading other than as a back-up, I think that aiding our neighbors in their quest for a simple human right, clean safe water, is our moral imperative. There may come a time when Wilmington and Woburn need to go fully on MWRA and that should always be possible for them to do. While having ...OK I'll admit...GIANT towers in Reading may be in inconvenience, how could we not lend a hand? It could be a matter of life and death.

Get Yer Farm Share

I know that as you look upon this fine weather we have been having of late, the first thing on your mind must be "farm share"! Right!? Well, never-the-less, it is sign up time for many farm shares in the area and if you snooze you lose. Why a farm share? Here are my top reasons for doing a farm share....with my myriad of experience of....1 season!

• 1. If you do it right, you will be eating yummy veggies all winter. My frozen beets, squash, beans and broccoli are keeping us with wonderful tasty veggies that will last until late spring...at least.


• 2. You will try new vegetables and greens. Can you say kohlrabi?
  
• 3. You will learn how to eat seasonally by eating seasonally. It feels more connected to nature.


• 4. Many of the farms are organic which provide a more nutritionally balanced product.


• 5. You know exactly where your food comes from.


• 6. You have a personal relationship with the folks that grow your food and many times you actually can work on the farm in return for a reduction in price.


• 7. The food tastes so much better than produce found in the supermarket.




• 8. You support local economies and agriculture.


• 9. You have extra food to share with friends and family.


• 10. Opening the bushel box each week is a bit like Christmas morning. You never know quite what to expect.

We decided to get the full share at the Farm School again this year since we see how much food we have to eat this winter. I think that splitting the share would be a fine idea as well especially for families new to the experience.

How did we choose the Farm School?. It was primarily about location and that they offered organic produce. My husband works in Cambridge so we knew that it would be a good choice for us and he could commit to picking it up each week. Many of the farms that offer shares in the area have Cambridge, Boston or Brookline at their drop points. For example, Red Fire Farm offers several urban pick-up points which may be great for folks working downtown.

Other farms have pick up at the farms some of which are fairly close to Reading. Appleton Farms, a beloved choice of a friend, has pick-up on location in Ipswich/Hamilton. Drumlin Farm

in Lincoln as a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) as well. To find many more CSA's in the state go to Local Harvest and search all the different farm offerings in the area.

Another option is a farm co-op which finds the best of all worlds from different farms, and puts them together to form the baskets for pick up. Farm Direct Co-op is one such organization and has a drop off in nearby Melrose. Hurry on this one, as it looks like there is already a wait-list.

Some farms even offer meat shares with drop offs mainly in the Boston metro area. The exception is The Houde Family Farm which has a meat drop off in Melrose! Many of the online reviews are extremely positive. I am thinking about this one myself! I do think that with a meat CSA you need extra freezer space. Perhaps a better choice would be small ordering like at Carraig Farm with pick in Dedham. I love their site and I am so envious of this small farm lifestyle and their philosophy. I may have to order some chickens just to be a part of the scene:)

Finally...to Reading. We are not to be left out of the farm share business! Heaven's Harvest Farm is offering farm share delivery to Reading! They are offering full and half shares and you will have a local gal supervising the local delivery. Email the farm aneforever@aol.com or the local coordinator tmarfione@comcast.net for a brochure and details. I am very excited that Reading is having such a great opportunity and there has been enough interest to support a local drop! Way to go Reading!

I know this has been a link-heavy post. I just wanted you to know that there were many options that you could choose from . While the up-front cost are high, usually $600 per full share, spread out over the year will save you money. First you will be cooking more and eating out less and second, it really can store well over the winter months.

Happy dreams of sunshine and warmth!

Taking a Side Trip

It is that time of year that we all have to think about our gardens and farm share plans. I have been busy this morning researching for this post, and for my garden, when I came across a most wonderful blog called skippy's vegetable garden. This experienced gardener in Belmont will wow you with her photos alone, and there is so much to this site that it can occupy you hours so, be warned! I really loved the way she not only catalogues her post by title and dates, but she also divides them into vegetable topics like cucumber, tomatoes and get this potatoes. She also has an extensive list of other gardening blogs. So, I naturally gravitated to the ones located in Massachusetts.

Dreams and Bones is a blogger on Martha's Vineyard who is an avid gardener. Great entries and a helpful links to seed companies that includes the one I choose to get my potato seed, a Maine seed producer called Fedco Seed. I figured, if I am going to go down the potato route, I should get as local as possible. Maine is long synonymous with potato so this will be my chosen route. I also liked the whole company vibe as it is a co-op. Excellent!

From there I moseyed over to the Back Quarter Acre,which primarily focuses upon the beautiful world of non-edible gardening. These photos too, are so wonderful and delicate, it makes you want to dig up your yard and plant bulb, after bulb, after bulb. This Middlesex County blogger/gardener links to other Bay State bloggers which was how I found the Backyard Granger. I really liked the best and worst garden review.

So that was my morning, getting lost on the way to the potato field. I really feel it was important to read what other folks were up to around the bend in my road. They have inspired me to improve my own blog and to add a bit more too it. Hello to you all, and will be eager to hear of your season!

I will go into more detail about local farm shares as there have been a few messages about a local Reading farm share drop off. So... coming soon! I have to get through my season of celebrations..my son's birthday and my cousin's wedding! So much to be thankful for on this cold, snowing day in February.

p.s. I cannot post photos nor check spelling this afternoon with blogspot...so I thought I would publish and move on, mistakes and all!

Reading World Café

Well it may not be Paris in the 30's, but I do think this can really be a happening event. Now is the chance to really talk the talk and advocate for issues regarding Reading. The Reading World Cafe, scheduled for Wednesday Feb. 27th 6:30 p.m. at the Field House, is as local a process you can get. While it is not changing any laws or plans for Reading, it can get folks and the powers-that-be a chance to hear what is on your mind. Basically, you sit around a table with other Readingites and discuss what you see for the future of Reading. I am copying the key points from their site so you can get an idea of the format and goals:

World Café Process
The World Café is a structured conversation process that allows large groups of people to talk courteously together about their desires for the future of Reading. Following simple guidelines, participants discuss key questions in small groups at separate tables. The small groups shift and the conversation evolves as people change tables, share insights and perspectives, and discover what is commonly believed, desired and valued by community members. We will harvest emerging ideas from the discussion to identify dreams, opportunities, dilemmas and the next steps for getting what we collectively want.

This is quite an opportunity to bring up some of the ideas that we have discussed since last year. Healthier living, local food, and changing some habits for a better tomorrow. I really think that we will find many,many folks who agree with these "Eco Reading" views, perhaps some citizens may surprise you!

So please sign up. All you have to do is go here or call (781) 942-6660. I will be going and joining in on the conversations. I have high hopes that it will be a Mr. Rogers kind of experience where we all revel in our neighborliness and good cheer. I have no hand at organizing this event nor have I attended this kind of meeting before, but I think that even if you are shy, the small group setting will make it easy for everyone to participate. What do you think? Are you in?

Let's Get the Farm Into Reading Public Schools

Reading loves its children. It is obvious from all the towns events, goals and policies that Reading loves its children. We have wonderful folks in all positions working towards growing children into healthy and happy adults. Our schools are top-notch, and we spend lavishly making sure the physical spaces, the curriculum, and the technologies are worthy of our most precious gems. However, one area that many parents in Reading and around the country are concerned with is child nutrition. We have lower rates of obesity in Massachusetts than other parts of the country, but there is no doubt childhood obesity is on the rise. Obviously, Reading officials care very much about the health of our children as they have a wellness site dedicated to getting students fit and drug-free. What it really doesn't address is the food offerings in the public schools. Perhaps Reading can do better with providing lunches that are healthier, fresher and filled with more complete nutrition in one simple way...it is grown locally.

Massachusetts has a program to partner farms with schools throughout the state called the Farm to School Project. During the last school year 63 systems participated in the program and used locally-grown food in their cafeterias. Why couldn't Reading?

I have to be honest and let you know that I don't have a students in RPS, yet. So I do not have direct testimony to the quality of the food served in its lunch program. What I do have is experience eating many a federally-subsidized school lunch as a teacher. Yes, there were days that I forgot to pack, or was too lazy to pack, a lunch and it was cafeteria city for me. I tasted many a meal that is were similar to what I see listed in the newspaper for Reading lunches. Hot dogs, baked beans, french fries, tacos, subs, etc. I can not be sure, but I bet most of these ingredients were not cooked fresh. More than likely, they were heated from a can or defrosted from a frozen package. Make no mistake about my feelings, I am grateful for federally-subsidized lunches, as I recall the sweet faces of my former students that depended upon lunch in order to have at least one meal that was balanced and calorie-rich. But really, can't we do better? Can we stop including ketchup as a vegetable? Can't we challenge our cafeteria planners to include locally grown products in our children's menu? Wouldn't they be better off? I think, "Yes!"

Oh now I can hear some naysayers detailing how their kids won't eat healthy foods or how the cafeteria workers could not possibly deviate from their lower impact service. Then let's start small and incorporate steps and see how we can grow the program for our town. Perhaps we buy broccoli one season than add potatoes for the next. I think this is totally doable.

There are many resources being created in Massachusetts and across the country that will assist localities in creating the link between local food and local students. The Center for Ecoliteracy has created a very in depth guide to assist local school systems incorporate all aspects of a change in food policy.

So parents, it really is up to you to make some noise and make sure the changes that we would like to see can come into being. As for school officials, I know that you have so much on your plates (pun intended:) but this is something that will show leadership in a profound way. How wonderful would it be if Reading could be on the list of Farm to School participants next year. It just takes a bit of time, effort and the belief in possibilities!

Let's Review Shall We?

Happy new year! I hope you all had a lovely time spent with your families and eating wonderful fresh food....local of course! I must say I had a wonderful time and our homemade gifts for our son were a total hit! Santa's elves did a really great job making all of those toys at the North Pole and not in China.:)

The other day my son was in a bit of a tantrum and was not liking my discipline tone. He told me that I was being a "bad Mommy" and he was going to put a toy into the closet. (He actually gets a toy taken away if he is acting up pretty badly). He marches into my room (I am trying not to laugh) and looks around at what he will take away. Of course it has to be a most beloved toy for his discipline to work. What does he come up with? My hand lotion. Clever, but kinda naughty boy!

So hand lotion is kind of a big deal to me during the winter months. I think I must put on lotion about 10 times a day. The same goes for lip balm. In an effort to be less chemically impacted I used the cosmetic data base and tossed out my most beloved (and expensive) cosmetics that were not so healthy. Surprisingly, I have been able to get a few of my new favorites from local retail and a few products are actually made locally.

I purchased these items from The Natural Food Exchange in Stoneham, Whole Foods in Woburn (also Andover) and at the Newcomers and Neighbors shopping night. I tried many a product out and have been able to give thumbs up to the following products.

Shampoo. Max Green Alchemy Scalp Rescue Shampoo. Great lather and leaves my hair feeling clean but not dry. They changed the formulation and it is not as "healthy" as it was according to the database. They added "fragrance" and it now puts them at a #4 instead of #2 where they were.

Conditioner. Still looking for the total winner. Now using Burt's Bees Conditioner and also the MGA and they are working out pretty well. If you have any that you love, let me know.

Body lotion. Scentsible Soaps Lavender and Rosemary. It really takes the stingy biting out of winter skin and smells wonderful. This is a local gal from Newburyport that sells at shopping nights etc. I bought this last year at the Newcomer and Neighbor shopping night and love it. I am hoping to get some more, but as of yet my email has not been returned. Please email me so I can rave about you as well.

Hand Lotion. Collective Wellbeing Hand Cream. Hand cream is a very difficult one to replace entirely. I find myself supplementing this with other more "toxic" creams that I kept. I know, I know ...bad Eco Reading...but my hand suffer so. I really do think this is a great product...but I am still keeping my eye out for one that I may love even more (sounds like my dating days :)

Face lotion. Grateful Body for normal skin. Grateful Body is a California company is a tad on the expensive side, but I swear I never thought I would find a product that I loved as much as my other not so great for me, designer brands. Well I was proven wrong. I love it!

Tinted Lip Balm. Stolat Organics Pomegranate Lip Shimmer. This is a local gal that works her magic out of Newmarket NH. Really nice products and her website is filled with information detailing ingredients that she uses in her products. Bravo Stolat! Oh...on a side note.... Stolat is a famous slavic song sung at weddings and birthdays etc. Could she be one of my people?...hmmm interesting :)

Lip Balm. -Burts Bees beeswax or honey. I know that it is not the healthiest choice (the honey one gets a 4) and they are owned now by Clorox, but I really like them and decided to live with it for now. A better choice that my son uses is Badger Balm is the unscented variety. He hates anything that is "glwinty" (translation "minty"). I have used the cinnamon variety and it is very nice. The Burt's Bees can be found just about anywhere, and the Badger Balm I purchased at the Natural Food Exchange.

Soap. Steve's Soap Works. This is a new find that I purchased at the Natural Food Exchange and I love it. While the name could be sexier (kind of sounds like a foundry or something) the soap is very delicate and beautifully scented. I really love that it does not melt as fast as some of the other "natural" soaps tend to do.

Perfume. Nadina's Cremes "Night Queen". While this is technically a body lotion, the scents tend to linger so I use this as my perfume. According to the site the products is very versatile and can be used as perfume, massage cream, bath oil, and on and on. I have used this for about 15 years (local to Baltimore area) and I still think it is wonderful. They also employ mentally challenged workers and are committed to economics as change. Really nice.

Well, that leads be to makeup. I am still working on that. I did keep a small about of makeup to us for special occasions, but I have not found as of yet replacements for my foundation, mascara, blush, shadow, lipstick, and eyeliner. Lancome's Mascara sits at a #4 and I believe the foundation does as well. The others I am sure are 7+. Fortunately the big manufacturers are coming out with new "mineral" lines so they will become more mainstream. I think I will continue to look and replace a little at a time.

Oh...I wanted to tell you a bit more of the Natural Food Exchange....they are moving to READING! This is a recent discovery and I am floored that I never visited it before my new cosmetic quest. The staff is really helpful and knowledgeable and I even got to try my face cream at home for a few days before I bought it thanks to a sample they gave me. They have some many products to choose from and a wide variety of goods from honey to gluten free to cosmetics. Love it and after their move, it will be even closer!

Going more "green" has cost a lot of "green", I'm not going to lie to you. But if we don't change, what will be the price to our health? I have just read the book The Secret History of the War on Cancer by Dr. Devra Davis. I don't want to scare you my lovely friends, but please believe me when I tell you to think about making small changes in your choices of daily care products. It can truly have an impact upon your well being. It is the very least we can do for ourselves and our family. Remember, you're worth it!