I Love a Good Steak--Rarely

I do love a good steak, but I don't eat many. I probably have one a year at  home--the rest are ordered at restaurants a few times a year.

Have you noticed you almost can't get vegetables with your entree at a restaurant any more, unless you order an extra side? I am staying at a hotel with my daughter and granddaughter while my daughter is in a practicum for her Master's program, so we have been eating out every day. Last night was the first night vegetables were part of the dish without having to order as an extra. Every other night, the entree has consisted of meat and a starch (usually potatoes or rice.)

In most restaurants, a salad is iceberg lettuce with maybe some shredded carrots, a tomato and some croutons. That hardly qualifies as a veggie. The side list also usually includes macaroni and cheese, baked beans, etc. There's nothing specifically wrong with these sides, but they are not green, orange, red or yellow.

I know a lot of people who won't eat anything green. My husband is largely in that group, although he does eat green beans and corn--not a big variety to work with in meal planning.

The US is largely a nation of meat eaters, although we do appear to be eating slightly less meat than in the past, although. Eating a lot of meat has a significant impact on our health, our budget, and the environment. NPR ran an excellent story on the environmental cost of eating meat recently. According to the graphic in the blog, a quarter pound hamburger requires 6.7 lbs of feed, 52.8 gallons of water, 74.5 square feet of grazing land, and 1.036 BTUs of energy. Quite an expenditure for the small amount of meat.

With a background in biology, I am not against meat eating in a moralistic sense--nature is pretty draconian in its approach to the food pyramid. However, what meat I do eat, I want to be produced humanely and safely. And like most sedentary humans, more fruits and vegetables, legumes and grains would be an improvement in my diet.

Did you know there is no vegetarian restaurant in Wichita Falls? You can find one or two vegetarian choices on the menu in some restaurants, but they are few and far between. If you know of a restaurant with good vegetarian menu choices, please share. I know many of my vegetarian friends eat frequently at the Thai Orchid because of the vegetarian options.

I suggest using comment cards at your favorite restaurants to lobby for more vegetable choices; and entrees with more veggies and less meat. If you find someplace with a decent vegetarian choice, make sure the restaurant knows you eat there because of the choice.

Getting Back in the Saddle

I have been falling down on the job posting here. In part it's because I have been traveling quite a bit lately for work and partly because I started a Living Green in Wichita Falls page on Facebook. So many of the articles that spurred my ideas for posts ended up going directly to Facebook, although that was not my intent--there are some people who are not on Facebook after all, although that is hard to believe some days.

So, I will try to get my act together--there is much news to share and some events, products and services I have neglected to advertise as well as I should. If  you are on Facebook, find and "like" the page--there are still going to be short items and short notice announcements that make it there and not here.

Leftover Day

I hate to through food away. When I was growing up, the starving children in China would have been welcome to a lot of the stuff I had to eat, whether I wanted it or not. My parents probably didn't care that much about starving children, but we were not well off and food for four growing children was a big part of the budget. My parents were not going to throw food away; guilt was better than the alternative (which was to sit at the table until you ate what was on your plate or were dead.)

When my husband met me, I converted most leftovers into soup. I called it "garbage soup," which turned out to be a strategic error. He's not a big fan of soup anyway; he definitely wasn't going to eat anything with "garbage" in the title.

When the kids were growing up, we had a leftover night once a week. Any bits of things that weren't enough for a meal went onto the table, and we dined on the bits left over from meals throughout the past week. Today my husband and I are having a leftover day.

Americans waste way too much food. About 400 lbs of food per American is wasted. Not all of that actually gets to our homes for us to throw away, but that is a huge amount of food. However, American families could save $500 to $2000 on their grocery bills annually by turning this sad statistic around. I can use that much money--if for nothing else than to pay the additional amount food is costing. Have you noticed how much groceries are going up? The last few years have seen prices rise faster than usual. Although 2012 is supposed to be back in the normal range, some common foods will have significant increases. Here's the USDA on 2012 food prices.

So what can we do?

• Make a grocery list and stick to it
• Buy less--we tend to buy  more than we need
• Keep better inventory of what we have--I have been known to buy something I have on the shelf because I didn't see the item in the pantry. Sometimes I end up throwing the one in the pantry away because it is 3 years past the expiration date (yes, it has happened.)
• Use the leftovers
• Compost food waste, so it is a least going to some good and not into the landfill

Save money while doing good for the planet.

Community Recycling Center

OK folks. Many of you have been asking for more recycling options in Wichita Falls. Although not a City-provided service, this center is located behind Sikes Senter Mall and is a free recycling center where you can recycle many things, to include plastics. There is also a bin at the Midwestern State University campus next to the Dillard College of Business Administration. This service is provided by IESI, a waste management company.

IESI is also trying to start a curbside recycling program separate from the city collection. Obviously, there is a charge for this service. I am waiting for additional information from IESI--I'll post that when received. In the meantime, take advantage of this opportunity to recycle more than just organic items.

Friends of Lake Arrowhead State Park

The Friends of Lake Arrowhead State Park meet tonight in the dining hall at Lake Arrowhead State Park. Come and learn more about upcoming events and activities at the park.

Earth Day Movie Event

Green America is hosting an Earth Day movie night on Sunday (Earth Day, if you weren't aware.)

A special online presentation of "Bag It" will be shown at 7PM Central. This 2-hour documentary focuses on one man as he makes a decision to stop using plastic bags and how that decision changed his life. Tickets are $3.99. You can purchase yours here.  Someone with a big screen might want to host a short-notice viewing party.

Don't Forget the EcoFair Saturday!

Join River Bend Nature Center tomorrow, April 21, for EcoFair, from 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM. Admission is just $2; free if  you're already a RBNC member.

I will have a table set up--nothing fancy, surely, just an attempt to give some ideas for easy things all of us can do to live a more green lifestyle and to make more people aware of this blog. I will also have a set of To-Go Ware to give away.  I hope you'll stop by to say "hello" and to register to win.

Want to know some of the events scheduled for tomorrow?  See the River Bend blog.