I just thought I'd put up another photo of the wildflowers. This was taken last Sunday out by Picture Rocks pass.Make sure to get out there before the flowers are all gone.
3.11.2008
More Wildflowers
I just thought I'd put up another photo of the wildflowers. This was taken last Sunday out by Picture Rocks pass.Make sure to get out there before the flowers are all gone.
OK Feed Store
I'm sure none of you remember way back in the early posts where I talked about Sonora our cat. Well, one of the things we realize is that our cat is a carnivore. She eats meat. In the wild she'd just eat meat (and fur, feathers, bones, etc.). If you have a cat, it would be the same for them. Now with that in mind, please go read the ingredients list on your cat food. Don't worry, I'll wait.
Back already? Were you surprised? Bet you didn't know your cat was actually feasting on corn, did you?
Now even if you try to get the best food for little precious, you'll find that it is mostly grains and by-products. Why? Because the pet food companies are in the business of making a profit, and it is easier to do that by selling you a "fancy" cat food, rather than a good cat food. So what can you do to really get your cat a better cat food? Well, head on down to a local feed store. We use OK Feed and Supply on Ft Lowell and Dodge. They have quite a number of pet foods you probably won't find at the large chains and you might not recognize the names, but you'll find ones without grains and fillers. Some all natural. Some even raw. Now you might say what about cost?
We normally pick up 6oz cans and the run between $1-$2 per can. It is more than the "Fancy" kinds at the big box pet food land. But not that much more. To me, it's a win-win. I get a better grade cat food for our cat, and a local place gets my trade.
Oh, and you can get food for all your other animals there, too. From horses to birds, maybe even mice.
Back already? Were you surprised? Bet you didn't know your cat was actually feasting on corn, did you?
Now even if you try to get the best food for little precious, you'll find that it is mostly grains and by-products. Why? Because the pet food companies are in the business of making a profit, and it is easier to do that by selling you a "fancy" cat food, rather than a good cat food. So what can you do to really get your cat a better cat food? Well, head on down to a local feed store. We use OK Feed and Supply on Ft Lowell and Dodge. They have quite a number of pet foods you probably won't find at the large chains and you might not recognize the names, but you'll find ones without grains and fillers. Some all natural. Some even raw. Now you might say what about cost?
We normally pick up 6oz cans and the run between $1-$2 per can. It is more than the "Fancy" kinds at the big box pet food land. But not that much more. To me, it's a win-win. I get a better grade cat food for our cat, and a local place gets my trade.
Oh, and you can get food for all your other animals there, too. From horses to birds, maybe even mice.
Another local shop
Just the other day I was searching for more local food sources on Local Harvest and ran across a new entry: Southwest Bee Supply. Now I've known about it for years having passed by it on 6th Ave many, many times. I've just assumed that it had items for the apiarist, but they have more. They sell honey, which makes sense, and they sell pastured eggs. Now we haven't stopped in, yet, but once we need some more honey, this'll be the place.
As an aside, if you are looking for good eggs, by which I mean eggs that taste good, and where the hens actually get to go out side and eat grass and bugs, look for the words "pastured eggs" on the carton. As it turns out, "cage free," "free-range," and terms like that don't really mean what they say (see this article for example: http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-pastured-eggs.htm).
As an aside, if you are looking for good eggs, by which I mean eggs that taste good, and where the hens actually get to go out side and eat grass and bugs, look for the words "pastured eggs" on the carton. As it turns out, "cage free," "free-range," and terms like that don't really mean what they say (see this article for example: http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-pastured-eggs.htm).
Three new reads
Today, I finally put up a few more Read All About It columns. Here you can read quick book reviews on dozens of books we've reviewed over the past few years; possibly you'll find you next great read. Since there are quite a few up, I'll let you know the most recent ones are Flesh and Bone, Songbirds, Truffles, and Wolves, and In Defense of Food.
The review for In Defense of Food includes a hypothetical discussion with your great-grandmother about "Go-gurt Portable Yogurt Tubes" that I find to be hilarious (one of the tenets is that you shouldn't eat food your great-grandmother wouldn't recognize as food). More sobering is just how much of the items we eat, really are not food; instead they are food-like products pushed by big corporations with the sole intent of increasing profits. Read the book and you'll see.
As an example, I saw in the paper yesterday that Monsanto has started a group that wants to force the removal of the statements on dairy products that state that no rBGH or hormones were used on the cows. Not too surprising, they've found that they can't compete if all the information is presented. So they start lobbying to remove the information because consumers can't make wise decisions on their own. More surprisingly, is that for most foods they've already hidden the truth. Did you know that when Mad Cow disease (BSE) was rampant, a small company wanted to test every cow for BSE, but the USDA would not let them. Why? Large corporations were afraid that, to compete, they would have to test every cow, too, and they could not afford it. Note that your health or safety was not part of the decision.
Anyway, enough ranting. You can, and should, find out for yourself.
The review for In Defense of Food includes a hypothetical discussion with your great-grandmother about "Go-gurt Portable Yogurt Tubes" that I find to be hilarious (one of the tenets is that you shouldn't eat food your great-grandmother wouldn't recognize as food). More sobering is just how much of the items we eat, really are not food; instead they are food-like products pushed by big corporations with the sole intent of increasing profits. Read the book and you'll see.
As an example, I saw in the paper yesterday that Monsanto has started a group that wants to force the removal of the statements on dairy products that state that no rBGH or hormones were used on the cows. Not too surprising, they've found that they can't compete if all the information is presented. So they start lobbying to remove the information because consumers can't make wise decisions on their own. More surprisingly, is that for most foods they've already hidden the truth. Did you know that when Mad Cow disease (BSE) was rampant, a small company wanted to test every cow for BSE, but the USDA would not let them. Why? Large corporations were afraid that, to compete, they would have to test every cow, too, and they could not afford it. Note that your health or safety was not part of the decision.
Anyway, enough ranting. You can, and should, find out for yourself.
3.10.2008
Wildflowers
This winter we had some pretty good rains. That means it's wildflower season, perhaps the most amazing time to be out in the desert. On Sunday we went out to check out the wildflowers over by Picture Rocks pass as on previous years we had success in finding large stands of Gold Poppy and Lupine. We were not disappointed as the photo shows. Hard to believe this was taken in the desert, isn't it?
From what I've read the wildflowers are near their peak and it should start tapering off a bit, so you should head on out and find a few for yourself. If you want to check out the flowers at Picture Rocks, just head out west on Ina Rd, take a left onto Wade Rd (after the last light) and follow it over the pass to the parking lot that'll be on your right. The best flowers are on the south side of the road, and if you walk back up the pass you'll find some good stands of Lupine, too.
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