Second last day of no sugar. AWSOME.
It's been up and down. Hard, but not impossible. Knowing that the day would come when I could have it again and that it wasn't forever has helped me keep the spirits up. This last week I've actually not thought that much about it, which has been nice but also resulted in some accidental fails...
List of fails
1. Ice cream dinner (emo breakdown)
2. Giffel
3. One slice of white bread
4. Lingonberry jam that I thought was sugar free but that wasn't
5. Mum's home made müesli which contains syrup
6. The white bread on a falafel, it was impossible to eat only the content
And I am completely fine with this. Actually, this is sort of how I would like my life to be. (You see an attitude change here? Psychologists say behaviour change attitude). Maybe have a dessert or something nice now and then, but not every day and not feeling bad about it when I do. My skin has gotten a lot better, and I can eat heaps without gaining weight since your body can't take up fat if you don't eat sugar (that's how Atkins work too). And an occasional glass of wine or beer, even though I've managed very well without too.
So everyone, try this. I really mean it. It's so worth it!
Next 30 day challenge then? I have decided to go for Creative Writing: 30 min per day. I want to boost my poetry writing and work on a scene project I'm putting up for May. Woop!
Showing posts with label Food. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Food. Show all posts
Thursday, 15 March 2012
Thursday, 8 March 2012
Café review XI-XV
Here come some more café reviews. I think I write them mainly so that I can map how many of the cafés in Malmö I have been to, and make sure to try different ones.
Chez Madame: This café re-opened in a place which used to be called Old Bridge. This is one of the new hot spots in town; it is trendy, organic, healthy... But also very noisy, long tables and very crowded. I was actually a bit disappointed, since cosiness is very important to me at cafés. Not too comfy (I can ditch a café if their chairs look uncomfortable) and there is just no peace and quiet. But I was there at rush hour, so it might be nicer at some other time of the day.
Café Agnez: This place is a bit more expensive than others, buuut it is vegan, they have some raw food snacks (that are cheaper than in other places) and a backyard where you can sit even if it is cold since they have heating and blankets. it doesn't get windy because of the high buildings surrounding it, but that means there's not much sun either... Everything is home made and organic, which makes your stomach and conscience happy, but your wallet a little sad.
Kungsgatan: Prepare to fight for your table and have lots of trolleys around you. this is the favourite hangout for Swedish "latte-mammor", but they have all the reason to be here - it is gorgeous. Their sunday brunch is crowded but used to include waffles, they make their own bread, and the interior design is beautiful. Big windows, 19th century furniture in white, blue and gold... Sweet and classy but still not overpriced.
Glassfabriken: The alternative, vegan, "I'm so cool I fuck the system" hangout. But it is really nice actually, nice furniture and good food, only home made (vegan) pastries. Prices are all right too, but since it is run completely by volunteers, the staff is the slowest and crappiest ever. Don't order anything they have to prepare for you if you don't have a lot of time. It will be yummy, but prepare to spend a good amount of time waiting for them to even notice you are there.
Puls Espressobar: One early morning I walked around all of town to find a nice place to study. This place has amazing coffee and the owner was super-nice, and you can really tell he cares about the coffee. The interior is not too interesting, no wifi and no cool pastries but I got to be alone on the almost secret second floor. Not too pricey either.
Chez Madame: This café re-opened in a place which used to be called Old Bridge. This is one of the new hot spots in town; it is trendy, organic, healthy... But also very noisy, long tables and very crowded. I was actually a bit disappointed, since cosiness is very important to me at cafés. Not too comfy (I can ditch a café if their chairs look uncomfortable) and there is just no peace and quiet. But I was there at rush hour, so it might be nicer at some other time of the day.
Café Agnez: This place is a bit more expensive than others, buuut it is vegan, they have some raw food snacks (that are cheaper than in other places) and a backyard where you can sit even if it is cold since they have heating and blankets. it doesn't get windy because of the high buildings surrounding it, but that means there's not much sun either... Everything is home made and organic, which makes your stomach and conscience happy, but your wallet a little sad.
Kungsgatan: Prepare to fight for your table and have lots of trolleys around you. this is the favourite hangout for Swedish "latte-mammor", but they have all the reason to be here - it is gorgeous. Their sunday brunch is crowded but used to include waffles, they make their own bread, and the interior design is beautiful. Big windows, 19th century furniture in white, blue and gold... Sweet and classy but still not overpriced.
Glassfabriken: The alternative, vegan, "I'm so cool I fuck the system" hangout. But it is really nice actually, nice furniture and good food, only home made (vegan) pastries. Prices are all right too, but since it is run completely by volunteers, the staff is the slowest and crappiest ever. Don't order anything they have to prepare for you if you don't have a lot of time. It will be yummy, but prepare to spend a good amount of time waiting for them to even notice you are there.
Puls Espressobar: One early morning I walked around all of town to find a nice place to study. This place has amazing coffee and the owner was super-nice, and you can really tell he cares about the coffee. The interior is not too interesting, no wifi and no cool pastries but I got to be alone on the almost secret second floor. Not too pricey either.
Sugar free: Day 22
So just above three weeks have past and only one week left to go! It feels pretty amazing, it was so hard in the beginning and every day of no sugar was a great challenge. Now it is part of my everyday life to say no.
How long did it take me to get rid of the cravings? Well, I would say maybe five days to get rid of the worst, then maybe two weeks to not get random cravings regularly. I mean, I can still feel the desire to eat something, but the thought of it is not overwhelming. One very good thing to do is to sort all the sweet thinks out of reach. I have a little stock of hidden goods, but it's a bit complicated to reach them... I saw the importance of that today when I decided to have a little "giffel" (mini-cinnamon roll) just because I had bought them (to bribe others) and there were some left. It was good, but not that good. And no desire to have more than one, which I feel immensely relieved by.
I have gone through an emotionally pretty rough period, which means that I otherwise would have comforted myself with heap loads of chocolate. Now I know there is sugar free chocolate, but I think that would just make me eat heap loads of that so I ruled that out too. One evening I felt completely miserable and had ice cream for dinner. I actually didn't feel too bad about it, maybe my stomach wasn't too satisfied but I had no wish to go back to my prior diet.
Alcohol then. Yes, I miss having wine sometimes (had a dinner out where I really missed it) but as for the partying, I had a great night out and saved quite a lot of money. This has never really been an issue to me, but I will definitely drink more carefully after this challenge.
So, where do I see myself after this? I understand the people who decide to live like this always, but I choose not to. I will really try hard to keep my sugar intake restricted, maybe something like only weekends, or twice a week. I have done that earlier (2008) and it worked out fine. When it comes to my weight it really hasn't changed, which I interpret as I have more or less my ideal weight. I was happy with it before, and it is great if I can maintain it.
Today I had a weird mishmash of fruit, oats, hemp protein and tahini for breakfast, a few cups of coffee, a root vegetable/bean stew in coconut milk for lunch, some cereals with yoghurt in the afternoon, stir-fried veggies with whole grain pasta for dinner and topped up with some raspberries for dessert. Ok I would say.
Martin just wrote to me and asked me for new 30 day challenges. Now I would really like to do a vegan challenge, but I think I would need a week of normality to have the energy to do that. I have a new, very encouraging friend to help me out with motivation there, but I think that's a little over the top for Martin (you gotta be able to live somewhat normally, and I'm just saying this would require a lot of work, not that he wouldn't be able to). Another one I would really need is the no caffeine one, which I think would be all right since I could just replace everything with tea.
Other ideas...
Draw something everyday to boost creativity.
Write a poem every day.
Take a picture every day.
Write with my right hand (I am left handed) for 5 min every day.
Live only of dumpster dived food (hardcore...)
Practice yoga/tai chi/whatever every day.
Write emails or letters to friends you struggle to stay in touch with, for example 10 letters in 30 days (maybe hard to do as it requires some time).
Brush your teeth with your "wrong" hand.
Write down something you are happy about and something you could have done better/differently every day.
Keep a dream diary.
What do you think, Martin?
How long did it take me to get rid of the cravings? Well, I would say maybe five days to get rid of the worst, then maybe two weeks to not get random cravings regularly. I mean, I can still feel the desire to eat something, but the thought of it is not overwhelming. One very good thing to do is to sort all the sweet thinks out of reach. I have a little stock of hidden goods, but it's a bit complicated to reach them... I saw the importance of that today when I decided to have a little "giffel" (mini-cinnamon roll) just because I had bought them (to bribe others) and there were some left. It was good, but not that good. And no desire to have more than one, which I feel immensely relieved by.
I have gone through an emotionally pretty rough period, which means that I otherwise would have comforted myself with heap loads of chocolate. Now I know there is sugar free chocolate, but I think that would just make me eat heap loads of that so I ruled that out too. One evening I felt completely miserable and had ice cream for dinner. I actually didn't feel too bad about it, maybe my stomach wasn't too satisfied but I had no wish to go back to my prior diet.
Alcohol then. Yes, I miss having wine sometimes (had a dinner out where I really missed it) but as for the partying, I had a great night out and saved quite a lot of money. This has never really been an issue to me, but I will definitely drink more carefully after this challenge.
So, where do I see myself after this? I understand the people who decide to live like this always, but I choose not to. I will really try hard to keep my sugar intake restricted, maybe something like only weekends, or twice a week. I have done that earlier (2008) and it worked out fine. When it comes to my weight it really hasn't changed, which I interpret as I have more or less my ideal weight. I was happy with it before, and it is great if I can maintain it.
Today I had a weird mishmash of fruit, oats, hemp protein and tahini for breakfast, a few cups of coffee, a root vegetable/bean stew in coconut milk for lunch, some cereals with yoghurt in the afternoon, stir-fried veggies with whole grain pasta for dinner and topped up with some raspberries for dessert. Ok I would say.
Martin just wrote to me and asked me for new 30 day challenges. Now I would really like to do a vegan challenge, but I think I would need a week of normality to have the energy to do that. I have a new, very encouraging friend to help me out with motivation there, but I think that's a little over the top for Martin (you gotta be able to live somewhat normally, and I'm just saying this would require a lot of work, not that he wouldn't be able to). Another one I would really need is the no caffeine one, which I think would be all right since I could just replace everything with tea.
Other ideas...
Draw something everyday to boost creativity.
Write a poem every day.
Take a picture every day.
Write with my right hand (I am left handed) for 5 min every day.
Live only of dumpster dived food (hardcore...)
Practice yoga/tai chi/whatever every day.
Write emails or letters to friends you struggle to stay in touch with, for example 10 letters in 30 days (maybe hard to do as it requires some time).
Brush your teeth with your "wrong" hand.
Write down something you are happy about and something you could have done better/differently every day.
Keep a dream diary.
What do you think, Martin?
Tuesday, 21 February 2012
Sugar free: Day 6
This is what my breakfast smoothie looks like. Given its funky colour by the super food Spiroulina, an algae!
Food of today:
| 09:00 Breakfast | 11:00 Fika | 15:00 Lunch | 20:30 Dinner | Other |
| Smoothie: Banana, apple, oat flakes, spiroulina, oat milk | Whole grain bun 2 cups of coffee | Tofu fried with sprouts, millet and salad | Buckwheat porridge and a hard bread sandwich with cream cheese | Mate |
Monday, 20 February 2012
Café review V-X
So, I have been to quite a few cafés that I haven't reviewed yet, so here comes a little guide to some tops and lows...
Café Grannen (the neighbour): Kind of artsy place that I like because it has cheap coffee, only 15 sek. They have a pretty unpretentious breakfast buffet for 65 which is a good deal. Moreover, they have big tables suitable for studying/working, and they have free wifi. It is located not too far from where I live, but not in the centre, which means that it's generally not too crowded. A place to spend time!
Café Mocca has a good location and is not too crowded, since it is big but still not noisy. They have good opening hours (until 20:00) and their pastries look all right. My friend said their smoothie was really good, and apparently they also have wifi. Still, it's pretty impersonal and slightly boring.
Café Mys: Seriously, don't go here. They charge extra for your coffee refill (5 sek more, and it is 20 for the first), all their (4 different) pastries were pre-made delicato and pretty expensive. Also, the door doesn't shut properly so we had to get up about 10 times during the time we spent there to close it, as our feet got cold. They had reasonably comfortable chairs though, and as we sort of expressed that it was pricey and had to get up to close the door all the time, the owner refilled our cups for us. Thanks for that.
Espresso House at Davidhalls torg: Now I generally try to avoid this massive chain and they sometimes feel like a plague (there are 15 of them in Malmö!), but truth is, they make good coffee and pastries. They are a bit pricey (25 sek for a coffee) but they give you student discount and they refill your cup. This particular one is located slightly of the beaten track and I chose it because of their comfortable chairs to sit and read, but I was still distracted by all the families. And of course they have wifi.
Café Simpan (simrishamnsgatan): Ah. This is one original coffee shop. Everything is odd and funky, they make extremely good soy latte, home made sandwiches and carrot cake... Open until 01:00 three days per week and wifi, in the most popular hipster area of Malmö. Awesome? Yes. Too crowded? Pretty much always, which is a shame. If you are heading out at odd hours, try it!
Café Grannen (the neighbour): Kind of artsy place that I like because it has cheap coffee, only 15 sek. They have a pretty unpretentious breakfast buffet for 65 which is a good deal. Moreover, they have big tables suitable for studying/working, and they have free wifi. It is located not too far from where I live, but not in the centre, which means that it's generally not too crowded. A place to spend time!
Café Mocca has a good location and is not too crowded, since it is big but still not noisy. They have good opening hours (until 20:00) and their pastries look all right. My friend said their smoothie was really good, and apparently they also have wifi. Still, it's pretty impersonal and slightly boring.
Café Mys: Seriously, don't go here. They charge extra for your coffee refill (5 sek more, and it is 20 for the first), all their (4 different) pastries were pre-made delicato and pretty expensive. Also, the door doesn't shut properly so we had to get up about 10 times during the time we spent there to close it, as our feet got cold. They had reasonably comfortable chairs though, and as we sort of expressed that it was pricey and had to get up to close the door all the time, the owner refilled our cups for us. Thanks for that.
Espresso House at Davidhalls torg: Now I generally try to avoid this massive chain and they sometimes feel like a plague (there are 15 of them in Malmö!), but truth is, they make good coffee and pastries. They are a bit pricey (25 sek for a coffee) but they give you student discount and they refill your cup. This particular one is located slightly of the beaten track and I chose it because of their comfortable chairs to sit and read, but I was still distracted by all the families. And of course they have wifi.
Café Simpan (simrishamnsgatan): Ah. This is one original coffee shop. Everything is odd and funky, they make extremely good soy latte, home made sandwiches and carrot cake... Open until 01:00 three days per week and wifi, in the most popular hipster area of Malmö. Awesome? Yes. Too crowded? Pretty much always, which is a shame. If you are heading out at odd hours, try it!
Sugar free: Day 5
No more night mares but I am unfortunately getting a cold. My second this year! What have I done? So I take Kan jang, a natural medicine, make tea from fresh ginger and press lemon into it, and eat raw garlic. Its not so bad since I can't taste the garlic. Have spent some time in a café studying, will be doing much of that this week so should try to write some reviews. Today my flatmate had a chocolate cookie while at the café and I didn't get a craving. Yes, I think I have it under control. Tomorrow will be another test though, as it is Fettisdagen!
Today's food:
There is a lot of cheese in my diet right now, which is only because I managed to dumpster dive a lot of cheese last week...
Today's food:
| 09:00 Breakfast | 15:00 Lunch | 19:30 Dinner | Other |
| Smoothie: Banana, pear, spiroulina, oat milk | Millet salad with blue cheese, avocado, fresh spinach, tomato and sprouts | Omelette with mushrooms and salad | Tea (fresh ginger) 2 cups of coffee |
There is a lot of cheese in my diet right now, which is only because I managed to dumpster dive a lot of cheese last week...
Sunday, 19 February 2012
Sugar free: Day 4
Lunch!Food of today:
| 10:00 Breakfast | 14:00 Lunch | 19:30 Dinner | Other |
| Smoothie: Banana, orange, oat flakes, spiroulina, oat milk | pasta with tofu, tomatoes and fresh spinach bread with cream cheese | Buckwheat porridge and a cheese sandwich | Tea |
Saturday, 18 February 2012
Sugar free: Day 3
Lunch! Sorry for the crappy picture, Iphone camera in my kitchen...Definitely less sugar cravings already. Went to yoga class today, since I had gained ½ kilo in those two days. Guess it's just natural variation, and I'm not worried at all about it.
Food of today:
| 10:00 Breakfast | 14:00 Lunch | 17:00 Snack | 18:30 Dinner | Other |
| Smoothie: Banana, orange, oat flakes, spiroulina, oat milk | Mashed potatoes with brussel sprouts, beans and carrot | Fruit salad | Buckwheat porridge and a hard bread sandwich with cream cheese | tea, some glasses of water |
Friday, 17 February 2012
Sugar free: Day 2
How do I feel then? Cravings? Oh yes, but I can handle them. They make me understand that I need this detox, that I want to find a balance between an occasional treat and the every day sugar overdose. I so hope I can find that.
Food intake of today then:
Doing fine! No coffee today either, which was good for me.
Food intake of today then:
| 7:30 Breakfast | 12:30 Lunch | 16:00 Snack | 18:30 Dinner | 32:00 Nearly midnight snack |
| Smoothie: Banana, apple, oat flakes, spiroulina, oat milk | Bulgur with tofu, beans and sprouts | Some avocado and bean sprouts | Mashed potatoes with brussel sprouts and a cheese sandwich (yes, whole grain) | Müesli with yoghurt |
Doing fine! No coffee today either, which was good for me.
Thursday, 16 February 2012
Sugar free: Day 1
Stumbled out of bed early this morning and got my body onto the scale. For a dietary experiment, controlling my weight seems like a good idea. I am very happy about the digits on the display, but I would like for my body to have a little more muscles and a little less fat. Let's see where this month will take me.
So, my food intake of today has looked like this:
So far, so good, I would say. I have had some slight sugar cravings, but I'm pretty sure they arise because I know I'm not allowed to. I need to stock up on berries! (after defrosting the freezer...) I saw another Ted Talk the other day about keeping your goals to yourself, since talking about them apparently made you less likely to fulfil them. In this case I think they are wrong! Another Ted Talk was more into the same thinking as I am, that sharing the updates of his challenge gives him supportive pier pressure. Let's do that!
And how is Martin doing? Check out HERE
So, my food intake of today has looked like this:
| 7:30 Breakfast | 12:30 Lunch | 16:00 Snack | 18:30 Dinner | Other |
| Smoothie: Banana, kiwi, oat flakes, spiroulina, oat milk | Veggie stew with coconut milk | Whole grain bread with mozzarella cheese and tomato | Bulgur with panfried vegetables (broccoli, zuccini...) in soy sauce | two apples, ½ litre of water, more coffee and tea |
So far, so good, I would say. I have had some slight sugar cravings, but I'm pretty sure they arise because I know I'm not allowed to. I need to stock up on berries! (after defrosting the freezer...) I saw another Ted Talk the other day about keeping your goals to yourself, since talking about them apparently made you less likely to fulfil them. In this case I think they are wrong! Another Ted Talk was more into the same thinking as I am, that sharing the updates of his challenge gives him supportive pier pressure. Let's do that!
And how is Martin doing? Check out HERE
Wednesday, 15 February 2012
Countdown - last day of sugar
My idea was to eat as much sugar and unhealthy crap as possible today, to disgust me into doing this internal cleansing. It's been both tasty and yucky, I would say. Chocolate müsli, white bread and pasta, sweetened soy milk, pastries, sweets, crisps... yeah. It could possibly have been a little worse, but I definitely feel like I need what is coming. I should to remember to drink more water too during this.
How are you doing Martin?
How are you doing Martin?
Monday, 13 February 2012
30 Day Challenge: Sugar free diet
So, inspired by a TED talk by Matt Cutts about trying something new for 30 days, Martin (Cornish traveling friend) have decided to cut out sugar for 30 days. We both really need it. I mean, really.
So, we are to start on the 16th of February to end the 16th of March. Right now we are in the build up period: say goodbye to all the good stuff, meaning we just shared a Terry's chocolate orange for dinner. Great. (I'm going running tomorrow morning). And to put pressure on myself, I am going to blog about it so that someone reading my blog will come and kick me on the shin if I break the rules.
We still need to clear out the rules though. Martin has spent some time today researching sugar free diats, to see what is considered sugar and what's not.
Ruled out: Chocolate, sweets, alcohol, ice cream, pastries, crackers and cookies, desserts, pies, squash (as in mix juice/concentrate crap), flour: meaning white bread, rice, pasta, syrup, all kind of marmalades and jellies, all kinds of food with refined sugars (sweet chili sauce for example), sweetened soy milk, sport drinks, sweetened coffee.
Still in: Fruit, fresh juice (make sure no added sugar!), raisins, nuts. Obviously all kind of veggies, cereals, whole wheat bread, rice and pasta, lactose such as milk and unsweetened yoghurt, eggs, coffee, tea, mate and honey, but only for cooking.
Wish us good luck because we so need it! And I hope our day 31 will not look like Matt's.
Saturday, 28 January 2012
Café review IV
Today I went out to have breakfast and study for a while, so I was looking for a place with wifi. I had walked past café Sockerbit before so I thought I'd check it out.
When it comes to pastries, it looks absolutely brilliant. It's creative, it's home made, it's food for your eyes and sweet tooth. I had a breakfast which was 49 sek (5 €) and included a coffee or tea, sandwich and a little cup of yoghurt and granola (müsli). It was good because it was enough, without leaving you hungry but still fairly cheap. Staff seemed allright and there are nice tables and chairs, quite a few in a pretty small room. Nice music but it is a new and popular place, so it gat pretty filled and loud around noon and I felt like I was wasting their precious space as I occupied a table for about 4 hours... I would love to go back but avoid rush hours! Nice organic fairtrade coffee with one refill, 25 sek (2,5 €).
When it comes to pastries, it looks absolutely brilliant. It's creative, it's home made, it's food for your eyes and sweet tooth. I had a breakfast which was 49 sek (5 €) and included a coffee or tea, sandwich and a little cup of yoghurt and granola (müsli). It was good because it was enough, without leaving you hungry but still fairly cheap. Staff seemed allright and there are nice tables and chairs, quite a few in a pretty small room. Nice music but it is a new and popular place, so it gat pretty filled and loud around noon and I felt like I was wasting their precious space as I occupied a table for about 4 hours... I would love to go back but avoid rush hours! Nice organic fairtrade coffee with one refill, 25 sek (2,5 €).
Wednesday, 25 January 2012
Eyes on food and consumption
About doing something for someone else in this harsh world - there is a group in Malmö, Sweden, called Matförmedlingen - the food distribution. They get food thrown out by ab anonymous bakery and grocery store and then distribute it to people. It can for example be given to a shelter for homeless or distributed in the streets, but the main goal is to lessen the waste and show people that our consumption is ridiculous. They have a blog in Swedish that can be found HERE, have a look and get inspired!
Saturday, 31 December 2011
Living cheap III
Honestly, cheap living is after all just about getting to the bottom with what you really need. Need not Greed, as the slogan goes. So do you actually need a new winter coat, or does the one you bought last year or two years ago still serve you? You see the point. Still, one thing you will always need (at least to some extent) is food.
Lesson three - Dumpster diving
DD is exactly what it sounds like - get into a dumpster and pick up what you want.
"6.7 million tonnes of food is thrown away by households in the UK every year, or, to put it another way, around a third of all the food we buy ends up being thrown away" Salford city council
...and then consider how much the grocery stores throw away. It is seriously mind-blowing. And yes, some of it they throw away because it is not edible, but most of it actually is, just that if we have the choice between that product and a slightly fresher one, you go for the new one. Do you look at the best-before date when you buy milk? What happens to the one that is due tomorrow? And for how long is it actually drinkable? Milk is produced under very good conditions and generally last a little longer than what is written on the package. You just have to use your nose.
Top items found in dumpsters:
* Bread. At bakeries, you can even get bread baked the very same day, but that they because of policy will not sell the following day.
* Bananas. A little brown spot and no one will want it... or so they believe.
* Broccoli. You know how it goes a little yellow? You can brush it off.
How much can you save? Well, it depends on you. Some people survive entirely on dumpster diving, but it depends on if you can find everything you need/want in a dumpster not too far away. You might be unlucky and just find hot dogs and mashy fruit, or you have to add extra ingredients to make a complete dish. Really good thing is that it boosts your creativity when you have to use new ingredients and come up with new combinations.
Danger? Well, food quality you just have to see for yourself. Smell it, wash it and if you are a little doubtful, cook it thoroughly or throw it out. Heat kills lots of bad stuff, believe me. And so far, no one has died from a mouthful of sour milk (in case you have no nose to smell it). Legally, In Sweden, discarded property is still considered to legally belong to the individual or organization which disposed of it. Which means no, you are actually not allowed to take it. Which makes sense in a capitalist world view. However, moral and what is actually correct to do is a completely different thing. But you might want to be careful about who sees you (hence, this could be considered a night time activity).
How? It can be pretty tricky to get started, if you don't know where to go or how to get into a dumpster. Good tip is to research some before - look up your home town either on Ecosia (search engine) or on the very useful site Trashwiki. Here you can also find some info on laws and other things good to know. There is also a group on Couchsurfing where you can ask people to teach you or just for good tips.
What do you need?
*Comfortable clothes, not your brand new white jacket. You most likely will get a bit dirty. Think about what shoes you wear. Gloves are nice too.
*A flash light, preferably a head torch.
*A backpack and some plastic bags.
Its really not that hard. Another thing you can do if you feel uncomfortable diving into a dumpster, is to go to the market (eg. farmers market) at closing time and carefully ask around. Generally, the salesmen are happy to give away whatever they otherwise would have thrown to you.
Good luck!
Lesson three - Dumpster diving
DD is exactly what it sounds like - get into a dumpster and pick up what you want.
"6.7 million tonnes of food is thrown away by households in the UK every year, or, to put it another way, around a third of all the food we buy ends up being thrown away" Salford city council
...and then consider how much the grocery stores throw away. It is seriously mind-blowing. And yes, some of it they throw away because it is not edible, but most of it actually is, just that if we have the choice between that product and a slightly fresher one, you go for the new one. Do you look at the best-before date when you buy milk? What happens to the one that is due tomorrow? And for how long is it actually drinkable? Milk is produced under very good conditions and generally last a little longer than what is written on the package. You just have to use your nose.
Top items found in dumpsters:
* Bread. At bakeries, you can even get bread baked the very same day, but that they because of policy will not sell the following day.
* Bananas. A little brown spot and no one will want it... or so they believe.
* Broccoli. You know how it goes a little yellow? You can brush it off.
How much can you save? Well, it depends on you. Some people survive entirely on dumpster diving, but it depends on if you can find everything you need/want in a dumpster not too far away. You might be unlucky and just find hot dogs and mashy fruit, or you have to add extra ingredients to make a complete dish. Really good thing is that it boosts your creativity when you have to use new ingredients and come up with new combinations.
Danger? Well, food quality you just have to see for yourself. Smell it, wash it and if you are a little doubtful, cook it thoroughly or throw it out. Heat kills lots of bad stuff, believe me. And so far, no one has died from a mouthful of sour milk (in case you have no nose to smell it). Legally, In Sweden, discarded property is still considered to legally belong to the individual or organization which disposed of it. Which means no, you are actually not allowed to take it. Which makes sense in a capitalist world view. However, moral and what is actually correct to do is a completely different thing. But you might want to be careful about who sees you (hence, this could be considered a night time activity).
How? It can be pretty tricky to get started, if you don't know where to go or how to get into a dumpster. Good tip is to research some before - look up your home town either on Ecosia (search engine) or on the very useful site Trashwiki. Here you can also find some info on laws and other things good to know. There is also a group on Couchsurfing where you can ask people to teach you or just for good tips.
What do you need?
*Comfortable clothes, not your brand new white jacket. You most likely will get a bit dirty. Think about what shoes you wear. Gloves are nice too.
*A flash light, preferably a head torch.
*A backpack and some plastic bags.
Its really not that hard. Another thing you can do if you feel uncomfortable diving into a dumpster, is to go to the market (eg. farmers market) at closing time and carefully ask around. Generally, the salesmen are happy to give away whatever they otherwise would have thrown to you.
Good luck!
Tuesday, 20 December 2011
Reasons to be a vegetarian
Reasons to be a vegetarian - short summary of arguments to help you out when people attack you
Environmental aspect
There would be more food for everyone if we ate producers, not consumers because of energy loss in the food chain.
Big herds of animals destroy land (ex. erosion).
Large scale fishing destroys ecosystems.
Transporting meat is generally not conducted efficiently.
May cause extinction of animals due to overpopulation of others.
Side effects like methane gas and vast water consumption is inevitable.
Health aspect
The further up in the food chain you get, the more toxins are stored in the tissues.
there is an unknown possible risk with GMO's and growth hormones.
Animals killed in fearful conditions produce chemicals (caused by stress and terror) that I personally don't want to ingest.
Personally, I don't believe that decomposing flesh belongs in my body - eating death sounds pretty unhealthy to me, try something growing like a colourful fruit instead.
Ethical aspect
My belief is that it is not sound for a human to have that sort of power over an animal - you lose conception of what life is worth.
I also feel that breeding breeding large amounts of animals is a bizarre industry.
The meat industry is generally not pretty - animals are held under very unnatural conditions. Vegetarianism is, all in all, nothing but love.
However: Generally, the problem is not exactly the meat eating itself, but the quantity and the industry behind it. I just try to do my best. Do yours, whatever it is.
Environmental aspect
There would be more food for everyone if we ate producers, not consumers because of energy loss in the food chain.
Big herds of animals destroy land (ex. erosion).
Large scale fishing destroys ecosystems.
Transporting meat is generally not conducted efficiently.
May cause extinction of animals due to overpopulation of others.
Side effects like methane gas and vast water consumption is inevitable.
Health aspect
The further up in the food chain you get, the more toxins are stored in the tissues.
there is an unknown possible risk with GMO's and growth hormones.
Animals killed in fearful conditions produce chemicals (caused by stress and terror) that I personally don't want to ingest.
Personally, I don't believe that decomposing flesh belongs in my body - eating death sounds pretty unhealthy to me, try something growing like a colourful fruit instead.
Ethical aspect
My belief is that it is not sound for a human to have that sort of power over an animal - you lose conception of what life is worth.
I also feel that breeding breeding large amounts of animals is a bizarre industry.
The meat industry is generally not pretty - animals are held under very unnatural conditions. Vegetarianism is, all in all, nothing but love.
However: Generally, the problem is not exactly the meat eating itself, but the quantity and the industry behind it. I just try to do my best. Do yours, whatever it is.
Wednesday, 27 October 2010
Go Green
Eating is essential. Duh. However, the way we produce our food is, in essence, destroying our planet. The earth is essential to us. What we can do is choose - select the food that has the least negative impact on the environment, and the best physical impact on you.
Easy start:
Kidney bean dip
1 can of kidney beans -GO proteins!
Oil (canola oil, sunflower oil..) -Locally produced?
Lemon (juice) -Ecological?
Salt & Pepper
Rinse the kidney beans and put them in a mixer. Pour some oil over, not too much but we want the result to be creamy. Squeeze approx. ½ lemon over it and sprinkle some salt and pepper over. Blend in the mixer until you have a smooth paste. Sweet! Now put it on your sandwich with preferably some (home grown) sprouts. I would like to try this with some tahini in it too..
Cucumber is not good for the environment. However, dumpster diving is.
Easy start:
Kidney bean dip
1 can of kidney beans -GO proteins!
Oil (canola oil, sunflower oil..) -Locally produced?
Lemon (juice) -Ecological?
Salt & Pepper
Rinse the kidney beans and put them in a mixer. Pour some oil over, not too much but we want the result to be creamy. Squeeze approx. ½ lemon over it and sprinkle some salt and pepper over. Blend in the mixer until you have a smooth paste. Sweet! Now put it on your sandwich with preferably some (home grown) sprouts. I would like to try this with some tahini in it too..
Cucumber is not good for the environment. However, dumpster diving is. Look at the colour of the bean spread!
(Cred to Ellis)
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