3-30-10

STREAM AT SUNSET

MOUNTAIN CLIMBING

THRIVING CATERPILLAR COMMUNITY

PEACE

PEBBLE IN A SHOE

Just before sunset we set off to explore the granite dells behind Happy's home. We laced up our shoes and climbed the bluffs to watch the sun descend behind the horizon. We didn't make it quite to the top because we set out too late and were hesitant to climb down in the dark. Hopefully before we leave we'll find time to head out a bit earlier.

Neither of us are mountaineers, but basic mountain climbing is something we enjoy. When you reach the top of your climb, one's perspective changes drastically. You exert so much energy to reach the apex and think you cannot possibly go higher than you already are, but then you look around and see all the other peaks, which surprisingly are higher than where you stand. The grandiosity of the mountaintops are awe inspiring and humbling. So much wilderness and so much life stretches beyond what the eye can see. In the broad scheme of things, daily problems are essentially meaningless. Changing perspective can change everything.

3-29-10

RAW VEGAN FUDGE PIE WITH
AVOCADO ICING (SURPRISINGLY DELICIOUS)

SUNFLOWER SEED SPROUTS

PLANTING SPROUTS

TURNING COMPOST

SIFTING COMPOST

HAPPY

WATSON LAKE

RAW FOOD AT NEW FRONTIERS

TRANSPLANTING CHARD

It comes to our attention we have neglected talking highly of Happy. Happy is full of stories and full of love. She told us the story of when she changed her name to Happy Heavenly Oasis from Beth something something. She approached the judge's bench with the name change form and the judge angrily asked "What are you, a hippie on drugs?" Happy has a way with people, and she calmly replied "No your honor, I don't use drugs. In fact, I don't even drink alcohol. Do you?" He blushed and extended his shaking arm holding her change of name form. "I will not change your name without a middle name!" he proclaimed. Relaxed, she looked out the one window in his stoic chamber and saw clouds floating carefree in the blue sky. She replied "Heavenly is my middle name your honor. Will you write the name on the form, or will your assistant complete the form?" Her telling of the story was far more engrossing, as is her style when she tells any story, whether it be her trapped in a rising flood in Bangladesh, being an American ambassador in Australia on a television program, sipping tea in China, eating rice with royalty India, or speaking with a Kiwi about her birth place in New Zealand. She has us on the edge of our seat when she tells her stories. We are ever so enjoying being here with her and apparently she is enjoying us equally: she asked to marry us and have us adopt her. She said "I want a husband just like you, and a wife just like you." She tickles us in the best sort of way. Everyone deserves a Happy in their life.

Today was our most productive day in the garden thus far. First we turned the compost and sifted its contents through a screen. By sifting the compost, you can speed up the decomposing process, and get the pure, lush, rich organic matter needed to enhance the nutritional value of your soil faster. We filled a wheel barrel with the nutrient dense compost, and sprinkled it over the kale and chard, which we transplanted from the greenhouse to the garden. The kale seemed to handle the move smoothly, but we are fearful half the chard we moved may die. Unfortunately, the chard was infested with aphids before the move, so if they die, it's because they were the weakest plants. We're sending all our love into the chard, but even if they die, the space they opened up in the greenhouse will allow extra root space for the neighboring lettuce, which is happily growing in the greenhouse. We also planted sunflowers in the garden in the morning, and peas, pumpkin, and summer squash seeds this afternoon in the greenhouse.

Arugula! It also has been something we've neglected to mention. In case you're not sure, we're obsessed with arugula. It is easily our favorite salad green. No matter where we live, and what we do when our trip is over, we will grow arugula. It is growing everywhere here: in the garden, under the trampoline, beside the trees, next to the compost bin, even in between the rocks. It has been the main ingredient for our daily afternoon salad, and everyday we ecstatically discover a new patch. We can't wait for tomorrow.

FYI: Keeping kosher for passover at a raw vegan retreat will be a cinch.

3-27-10

IS THAT A BANANA IN YOUR POCKET
OR ARE YOU JUST HAPPY TO SEE ME?

THAT TUB IS LOOKING HOT

LUNCH: AVOCADO/SHIITAKI/ARUGULA/CARROT SUSHI,
SALAD, AND SUNFLOWER SEED HUMMUS


What's worse: Aaron has lost over 10 pounds in the last 3 days or that we were both criminals today? We're not sure.

The raw vegan diet is like vegetarianism; it works for some and not for others. Not surprisingly, it's working well for Jen but today Aaron hit the wall. And there is nothing wrong with that. Since arriving three days ago, we have abided by strict rules of raw veganism, minus consuming a very small amount of honey, which is not vegan since it's made by bees. Being a raw vegan in our own home might be different as we would purchase many varieties of fruits, veggies, and nuts and have lots of each. Here, four of us are eating well, however there is a small amount of everything. We don't want to be jerks and eat more than our share, but as mentioned above, Aaron arrived weighing in at over 170 and now weighs less than 160. Jen is having no such "problems". Working hard, we are hungry and eating very small portions. Part of this trip is to learn how other people in our country eat, and how that varies from what we're used to. Both of us could be vegans. Subsisting off a diet of mostly vegetables, fruits, and grains is already how we eat, however we do enjoy adding cheese and butter. We don't drink milk, we don't eat much yogurt, and we don't eat many eggs, so our level of vegetarianism is pretty close to veganism. Being a completely raw vegan, however, is quite another thing.

In a raw diet, you can't cook rice, pasta, bread, beans, quinoa, or anything. In a raw diet, a dehydrator is often used to "cook" foods, that our stomachs are physically unable to digest raw. Dehydrating a potato, for example, is the only way to make it edible since you cannot consume a raw, uncooked potato. If you dehydrate a potato, it doesn't cook above 100 degrees so it it still technically raw and essential nutrients aren't stripped in the cooking process, but it changes enough for us to be able to consume and digest. Being in Arizona is almost like having a natural dehydrator outside. In the summer, you could dehydrate foods by simply putting them outside, but right now it's too cold and won't work. A dehydrator takes an average of 10 hours running at 100 degrees Fahrenheit to "cook" anything. There is a dehydrator here, but we were very kindly asked not to use it because of the energy it requires. Without a dehydrator, the types of raw foods you can eat are very limited. You can eat salads, or soaked and blended foods. You can't eat a raw bean but if it is soaked long enough and then blended, it is edible. As a result we're eating a lot of soft, pate-like dishes and it is starting to feel like we're eating only salad and baby food. Please don't misunderstand, this food is quite tasty, but we require variety of flavor and texture. Aaron couldn't take it any longer and ate an entire box of crackers stashed in the car. Jen is pretty ok with this diet, however needs a wider variety of ingredients and access to a dehydrator to make this work.

Food aside, it was a bit exhilarating to be criminals today. One of our jobs while we're here is to lay stones around the pool and cement them in. There were 14 80-pound bags of concrete already here, but unfortunately they were exposed to rain and solidified before our arrival. As a result, we had to haul them off but since the local dump charges fifty cents per pound for your garbage, this is not very cost effective solution for Happy. Instead, we loaded the bags into her pick-up truck with directions to two local gas stations equipped with dumpsters. We all know that dumping your trash in private dumpsters is illegal. Although illegal, we intended to politely ask for permission before dumping. Also, Happy's stick-shift truck is currently uninsured. After numerous stall outs, and being rudely turned away from one gas station we successfully unloaded a large wooden table, a large wooden sign, 20 ceramic tiles, a five gallon plastic bucket with solidified cement, and 10 of the 14 bags of cement at the second location. On the way back we almost stalled out on a round about. Jen can't drive stick shift at all, and we learned today that Aaron barely can. Another farm staple lesson reinforced: always expect the unexpected.

3-26-10

LUNCH

IT WAS A GOOD SOAK

Despite our continued best efforts, the cold weather has followed us to Arizona. Granted it's sunny, but the low 50's temperatures and high winds made it quite chilly today. One of our main chores for the morning was splitting and stacking firewood. What the deuce? We thought we were escaping the winter, but again, it has found us. And, our host, Happy, sounds like a WWOOF host broken record: "This is unusual weather."

Another chore this morning was to alphabetize the spice rack in semi-circles so all the spices could be easily seen. Everything at Happy Oasis is normally very well organized and labeled. But Happy was gone for 6 months in Hawaii, and since she just returned last week, things aren't quite up to snuff. Many of her exotic spices were unlabeled and in curious jars, so we had a big ol' smelling and tasting party to try to figure out what was what, and in which semi-circle it belonged. It was a fun activity, and reassured us we know some wild spices.

In a few days, hopefully we can get the place all spic and span and back to it's normal condition, although, it will be impossible to restore it fully. Here's why: Happy bought this house 16 years ago. It was the first house built in the entire Granite Dells. This area was a pristine natural oasis surrounded by cliffs, trees, and teemed with wildlife. She had lake front property and routinely kayaked throughout the mile long lake. However, in 2005, some developers decided to fill in the lake with dirt and build condominiums. What we want to know is, what fool in their right mind would fill in a natural oasis in the desert with sand? The developers filled in the lake, and chopped down almost all of the 600 trees on the lakes perimeter, thereby destroying the habitat of ducks, bobcats, mountain lions, frogs, fish, etc. Being an environmental activist, Happy put a stop to the development, but the landscape is permanently scarred.

Today, the lake is suitable for swimming only if you are a small toad, but some trees have been replanted and the beauty of this area is still very much intact. Her house is like a maze, with over 6 bedrooms, and cliff rocks peaking out from corners and crevices. It's pretty and has an organic charm when you open up your closet and see a light bulb, hangers, shelves, and a boulder extruding from the wall. Our private bedroom is situated on the ground floor, with most of the house above us. We have a bathroom with hot running water and flush toilets, and our screen door leads directly into the greenhouse. In an effort to conserve water in the desert, we are subscribing to a tinkle al fresco method.

3-25-10

DO YOU REALLY NEED A GREENHOUSE IN ARIZONA??

ROCK AND ROLL

LIVING ON THE EDGE...

...YOU CAN'T HELP YOURSELF FROM FALLING


The morning got off to a nice start when Jen and Happy did some yoga. Aaron got a little early morning chores in and then we got to work. We started by feeding the birds and giving them fresh water for their baths. Off to weed in the garden was next, which is different here than other places. Here, many weeds are utilized instead of put in the garbage or on the compost pile: wild mustards are eaten for lunch, wild grass is juiced, and a leathery wild mint too bitter to eat is made into tea. After selective weeding outside we moved to the indoor greenhouse. Aphids, small insects, are taking over some of the plants growing in the greenhouse and we are going to try to come up with a gentle solution to rid them from the garden. Both indoor and outdoor gardens received generous waterings from the rain catchment tanks and then we foraged through both for lunch. After lunch we bailed out dirty water from the hot tub which we plan to scrub tomorrow and have up and running by the weekend.

Unlike our last WWOOF experience, where we weren't allowed in the kitchen, here, one of our tasks is to cook. Or rather to prepare foods, since we're not "cooking." Although the rules vary, most people who eat raw believe food should not be cooked or heated to more than 115 degrees Fahrenheit. People who choose to eat this way tend to believe there are nutrients and enzymes in food that are destroyed when subjected to high heat. In fact, when we were on Cumberland Island we spoke with Glenn Roberts, a representative from Anson Mills, and he told us that cooking rice in boiling water strips the rice of many essential amino acids, not to mention the flavor. Eating raw does not mean you must be a vegan, or even a vegetarian. Anyone who has ever eaten sushi knows that lots of people enjoy eating raw fish. While we're here, we plan to eat like our host, raw vegan. It may not be what we're used to, but we're up to the challenge and plan to get creative.

We made a big salad for lunch with: arugula, mustard greens, mizuna, mint, dill, parsley, cilantro, and edible flowers, all which we foraged from the gardens. We topped that mix with carrots, beets, radishes, red cabbage, oranges, chia and pumpkin seeds, and raisins dressed in a light olive oil/apple cider vinegar dressing. For protein, we made hummus from soaked, hulled sunflower seeds. We soaked them overnight and then blended them with oil, tahini, cumin, cayenne pepper, chile, salt, pepper, and topped it with olives. We ate our hummus with celery and cucumbers. For dinner we made "live" gardenburgers by processing almonds and pecans with carrots, onions, nutritional yeast, paprika, and agave nectar which we formed into patties. We served that alongside beet greens and shiitake mushrooms marinated in sesame oil, Bragg's Liquid Aminos (raw version of soy sauce), kelp, and miso paste. The mushrooms were initially dried were rehydrated after soaking overnight. In a raw diet, soaking and sprouting foods is critical to having a balanced diet. You can soak a grain in water and it will become soft enough to eat in a few days--you just have to plan ahead. Eating just salad and fruit all week is not our intention.

3-24-10

ALMOST THERE

WE'VE DONE IT!

We climbed to the top of a volcano!

Our stay in New Mexico was so brief, but we cannot go without talking about green chile. Green chile is a variety of pepper that was introduced by the Spanish sometime between when Christopher Columbus arrived and yesterday...our history is a bit hazy. But the green chile is a staple in all New Mexican cuisine, from eggs at breakfast to burritos at dinner. There are various levels of heat, but pretty much, the green chilies are damn spicy. We dutifully sampled them, in effort to eat like the locals, and our faces didn't melt off.

NICE PSYCHEDELIC LOGO GRAND CANYON STATE

MOUNTAINS? WE THOUGHT THIS WAS DESERT COUNTRY

We left Albuquerque this morning in a hail storm, and arrived at The Happy Oasis-Alpine Arizona's Raw Vegan Retreat just outside the Prescott National Forrest. Our new home is nestled among pink canyons and a nearby flowing stream. It was a magical feeling to drive through desert, sand, and cactus and arrive at a hidden gem where flowers are budding and grass is growing. Our host is named Happy and she is happy. She seems super cool, and we think we'll learn a tremendous deal from her about foraging, among other things. She insists that all her landscaping should be edible. After all, the flowers on fruit bearing trees are beautiful, and then the fruit is delicious. When's the last time an oak tree did anything for you?

3-22-10

CATCH THE WIND

PRICKLEY PETE

NICE PLACE FOR A PICNIC

DRILL BABY, DRILL!


We tried to flea Texas this morning, but it's hard to quickly escape such a vast expanse. There was a whole lot of nothing as we drove through the back roads for 14 hours today. The bluebonnets, Texas's state flower, line the roadways and they were the only nice sight. En route we "fueled up" with coffee at Fuel in Llano, about 100 miles north of Austin. It was simply amazing. The barista was extraordinarily friendly, made good coffee, and gave us two complimentary brownies. If you are ever in Texas, go to Fuel. Hours later, we picnicked at Big Springs State Park. Lunching on our Farmer's Market goodies, in addition to pineapple and popcorn, was the best roadside meal yet. After passing many, many more plains, we finally crossed the border into New Mexico.

WELCOME TO THE LAND OF ENCHANTMENT

TATUM STREET SIGN

BLOWIN' IN THE WIND

WEATHER VANE

KOKOPELLI

SLOW TRAIN COMIN


The drive continued on into eastern New Mexico into the Rocky Mountain time zone, yet the scenery remained identical. 40 miles east of Roswell, sight of alleged UFO landings, we stumbled upon the sleepy town of Tatum. The streets of Tatum look the same as the rest of rural Texas and New Mexico but the street signs are hand made works of metal art. We happened to find Westcraft Metal Art, the proprietor of which, hand crafted each street sign in town over 30 years ago. His custom artwork decorated ranches for hundreds of miles in both directions. His life's work is palpable in the area and is completely astounding.

The sun finally set as we arrived in Albuquerque. We'll stay, visit, and explore tomorrow and probably head to Arizona Wednesday. We'll wwoof just north of Prescott. Although our vacation has been great, we're both quite eager to get our hands back in the soil and learn more about farming.

3-21-10

DON'T MESS WITH TEXAS

DOWNTOWN AUSTIN

ONE MAN BAND

THE HOUNDS BELOW

HOLY ICE BUCKETS BATMAN

WATCH OUT FOR RABIES

CONGRESS STREET BRIDGE BATS

We spent the past few days sleeping at the Hostel International Austin right on the south bank of the Colorado River. South by Southwest was winding down, and luckily we caught the tail end of the music festival. Friday night we walked around the city trying to find a show we wanted to see because there were so many options. 6th street in Austin is what Bourbon street is in New Orleans: a circus of music, madness, and drunks. Both are a little too overwhelming for our tastes, so instead we opted for something a bit more laid back, settling on a performance at the 121 Bar on 5th Street. The band was pretty solid, and we sampled the local beer of choice: Lone Star. Saturday, we braved the elements, fighting rain, cold, and 30 mile per hour winds at Home Slice on South Congress. Devon, Jen's old co-worker from Andrew's International, plays in the band La Strada, and they happened to play as part of "Music by the Slice." There were over 10 up and coming bands who played outside all afternoon into the night. One band out of Detroit, The Hounds Below,were outstanding. The lead singer invoked the late great Ray Orbison. Along with great music, we finally found a good slice of pizza outside of New York.

In addition to listening to excellent live music all weekend, we explored the local food scene. We decided to eat exclusively mexican food, and ate at 3 restaurants: Curras on Oltorf, Kerbey Lane, and Maudies, both on South Lamar. Curras has fantastic avocado margaritas and delicious tacos and enchiladas. Kerbey Lane was rumored to have the best brunch in the city and we can't imagine any place exceeding it. The breakfast tacos and vegan pancakes were heavenly. Maudies is Tex-Mex, and we've decided Tex-Mex is "T-R-B-L" terrible.* We also went to Austin's Farmer's Market at Republic Square first thing Saturday morning in the drizzle and purchased local artichoke/pickled jalapeno goat cheese, a rosemary ciabatta, arugula, and water cress. We imagine in the summer the market is thriving.

After yoga and pick up ultimate by Jen and Aaron respectively, we watched the sun set while sitting below the Congress Street Bridge Sunday night. We sat, along with hundreds of other people, waiting for thousands of bats to explode from the rafters underneath the bridge. Rumor has it in the summertime, the bats streak the sky with black, and feast on the city's mosquitos. Maybe it was the cold, or maybe daylight savings messed with their internal clocks, but unfortunately, we only saw a few hundred bats take flight. Still, it was a fun touristy attraction. We don't plan to explore too much more of Texas, but Austin was pretty awesome.

*Watch Frank Caliendo's impression of Charles Barkley to understand this reference.

3-18-10

THROWING GOBLETS

THE MASTER TEACHES THE NOVICE

LAKE CHARLES'S ONLY ORGANIC STORE

DARK CHOCOLATE GINGERSNAP TART

SISTERS IN SUNSHINE

DOWN ON THE BAYOU

AARON REFLECTS

TREE-HUGGING HIPPIE

MATURE CYPRUS GROVE

This week we relaxed and spent time in Lake Charles with Hali & Chris. We explored town, learned to make pottery, and even heard a lecture by a local organic farmer. We went into the only organic store in town to check it out and on the calendar was a scheduled lecture by one of the few, if not the only, organic farmer in the entire state. We attended the lecture, along with about 30 older women and 3 men who were interested in learning about organic food. The farmer spoke highly of biodynamic practices but mentioned he doesn't tell too many customers about the preparations because they would think he is performing some sort of voodoo.

In addition to Hali teaching us how to throw on the wheel, which neither of us mastered, we explored Sam Houston Jones State Park. It was a swampy park with several scenic walking trails we enjoyed. At nights, mostly we took advantage of the kitchen that was at our disposal and the incredible home entertainment system Hali & Chris have in place. It features a projector, a big screen covering an entire wall, and a connection to the internet, where you can stream any movie on netflix. Incredible. We haven't exactly been roughing it the past week.

Tomorrow, we're off to Austin to check out the end of South by Southwest music festival.