Wayne Dyer, A Great Spiritual Teacher

Heard the very sad news this evening that Wayne Dyer passed in his sleep last night.

He was our initial teacher in bringing enlightment and awakening into our lives.  He was such a humble man.  I still remember the Sunday morning I happened across him on a PBS fund raising special.  He was on for two hours and Gary and I sat and watched him not wanting to miss one word.  I knew I needed to learn what he had to say. 

Gary and I watched a rerun this morning of him on Super Soul Sunday and he said I'm not a afraid to die you just take off one suit and put on another.  He said, "we are all spiritual beings having a human experience."  I liked that.  He said, many things I liked.  I heard someone talk about a near death experience and she said it felt like she had finally made it home and was getting to sleep in her own bed.  Well, Dr. Dyer you have been a great light to many on planet earth and tonight you have made it home and you are getting to sleep in your own bed.  Thank you for your love and teaching that you have left for humanity.

You have gone to the grave in vigor like the stacking of grain in its season!

Fresh Peach Pie

This will be the last fresh peach pie this season.  We have eaten all the wonderful peaches off of our trees.  I have said this before, but they are the best peaches I have ever eaten.  Our two trees were brought to me by my dear sweet friend from Texas who passed several years ago.  I always think of her when I see those trees.  They came out of her compost pile and when she gave them to me she didn't know what kind of peach or if it would be good.  It turned out to be excellent.  I actually have a peach tree growing in my compost pile now and I'm sure hoping it's from one of these trees.  

I don't do anything special for a peach pie.  Peel and slice the peaches sweeten with a little sugar and I also put in a couple teaspoons of cornstarch.  Pour into a prepared pie crust put two to three tablespoons of butter on top of the peaches and then cover with your top crust.  Sprinkle with sugar and bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes and 350 for the last 20 minutes.

Wonderful peaches from a very dear and true friend.  I sure miss her and our early morning talks.

Fried Okra and Fresh Corn Tacos

Last night our daughters and little Starr Dutch came down to see the Perseids meteor shower and spend the night.  That day I had picked up some fresh okra and some wonderful corn on the cob.  I had read about fried okra tacos and this is my rendition.  They turned out wonderful and we all loved them. 

1 cup buttermilk
1  cup flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 pound fresh okra, whole

Stir together okra and buttermilk in a large bowl.  Stir together flour and other ingredients in a bowl. Remove okra in batches and dredge in flour mixture and place in a wire mesh strainer. Shake off excess. 
Pour oil to depth of one inch into a large, deep cast iron skillet, heat to 375.  Fry okra in batches 4 minutes or until golden brown, turning once.  Drain on paper towel. Put on a little salt while draining on paper towel. 
Grill corn until there are grill marks.  Remove and place larger end of corn in a bowl and use a knife to run along the edge or corn to remove kernels.
Dice a large bunch of green onions.
8 ounces of Monterey Jack cheese, grated
one container of cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 head of chopped ice berg lettuce
1 package of corn tortillas
1 dollop of Fage yogurt
1-2 cups of your favorite salsa

Fry your corn tortillas in your favorite cooking oil.  About 1/4 inch in a cast iron skillet. 
Take hot tortilla and smear one tablespoon of yogurt over tortilla then place one or two pieces of whole okra on the tortilla, then corn, green onions, lettuce, tomatoes and cheese then top with your favorite salsa.

Last summer, a dear and long time friend had me over for lunch and had fried whole okra to dip into buttermilk salad dressing and I've been hooked ever since.  This okra recipe is wonderful for frying.  I like it so much better than slicing it.

Little Star Dutch at his first star watch. 

Garden Gate - Thought this was a darling idea!

I

Raised Beds

I thought this was a great idea for raised beds.  They sat these galvanized containers on a black tarp type of material to keep the weeds from growing around the containers.  They also used tractor rims as containers also.  I've seen this method used in a lot of community gardens in cities. You can find a lot of galvanized tubs in all sizes and shapes. I see them at a lot at junk and antique shops.

You would need to fill these with good top soil as well as good compost.  I would say half and half.

My garden this year has not done well.  All the rain and major neglect on my part.  I haven't been home as much as I usually am and the weeds this year are taking over the place.  I know it also has to do with the amount of rain we have had.  But I have cleaned out two places close to the house and next week I'm planting spinach and kale for a fall garden.  I might plant some carrots.  I was reading that they are a lot sweeter in the fall than the spring.  Who's knows.  I have planted them in the spring but they didn't do that well. I'm thinking I will try again.  :)

You might try finding a medium size tub and planting spinach in it and placing it on the south side of your house.  I think you would have a good chance of having spinach most of the winter unless we have a brutally cold winter.

Summer Evening

It is a beautiful evening even though it's hot and humid.  These beautiful thunder heads were forming to the north and I had to take a picture of them, they are so beautiful.  I wish I had a better camera so you could see how really beautiful they look. 

So-Sweet Yellow Squash Pickles

 

These are wonderful pickles!  This is a great picture I found in a magazine.  I started buying these pickles several years ago at our farmers market and they are delicious.  I love them with brown beans and corn bread and they are great on a relish tray.  They would be wonderful on a chicken or ham sandwich. 

4 small yellow summer squash, cut into 1/2 inch thick slices (about 3 cups)
1/2 to 1 cup sliced onion ( I would use l large sweet onion)
1 tablespoon pickling salt
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup white vinegar
3/4 cup mustard seeds
3/4 cup celery seeds
3/4 teaspoon dry mustard

In a large nonmetal bowl combine squash and onions.  Sprinkle pickling salt over vegetables; stir gently to combine.  Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour; drain well.

In a 3 quart stainless steel, enamel , or non-stick pot combine sugar, vinegar, mustard seeds, celery seeds, and dry mustard.  Bring to boiling, stirring until sugar dissolves.  Add squash mixture.  Return to boiling.  Removed from heat.

Ladle hot vegetables and liquid into sterilized pint canning jars or other jars.  Cool for 30 minutes.  Seal and label. 

Chill for at least 24 hours before serving.  Store in the refrigerator for up to one month.

More GMO Information

There was a really good article in the July issue of Natural Awakenings Magazine.  This will be excerpts from the article.

Jeffrey Smith is the founder and executive director of the Institute for Responsible Technology.  He is author of Seeds of Deception.  Smith and his organization campaign for healthier eating in America. 

These are basic things you should know about GMO's that Mr. Smith talked about in the article. 
Genetic engineering is different from traditional crossbreeding.  The six major GMO engineered crops are soy, corn, cotton, canola, sugar beets and alfalfa.  Genetic engineering means a gene from a virus or bacteria was forced into the DNA of the plants.  Derivatives such as soy lecithin, soy protein, high-fructose corn syrup and sugar (unless labeled as cane sugar) are in the vast majority of processed foods.

Many U.S. consumers mistakenly believe that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approves GMO crops only after careful study. The FDA claimed it wasn't aware of any significant difference from other food crops and declared safety testing unnecessary.

Monsanto portrays Roundup as a benevolent herbicide. This is a lie.  Glyphosate, its active patented ingredient, alters biochemical pathways in the body.  Scientists have linked glyphosate to numerous diseases and disorders; including cancer, heart disease, diabetes, gluten sensitivity, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, depression, autism and reproductive disorders.  In March, the World Health Organization declared it a probable carcinogen.  I was reading an article recently where glyphosate wrecks the body's ability to heal itself by causing toxicity and nutritional deficiencies.  It also disrupts our gut bacteria as well as causing organ damage.

We can avoid GMO products by eating organic foods.  Organic foods are not allowed to contain GM ingredients.  There is now some zucchini, yellow squash and papaya grown in Hawaii or China that is infected with GM. Any packaged grocery product not labeled "Non-GMO or Organic is likely to contain at least one GMO; this includes meat and dairy products from animals that have eaten GM feed. Check out NonGMOShoppingGuide.com is a reliable resource that lists about 30,000 non-GMO products. The picture above is what you want to look for on products that have been verified as non-GMO.   Post Foods Grape Nuts, Target's Simply Balanced brand, Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream and Chipotle's restaurant menu are GMO free.  General Mills stopped using GMO beet sugar in Cheerios. 

Now after reading this, can you believe that the U.S. senate just passed a bill to stop the labeling of GMO products!!!! My husband just corrected me, he is not sure if it is the house or the senate.  Makes no difference, they are wanting to pass this bill!!! Why would a human being want to pass a bill that will not protect the American people from this danger?  They have been elected to protect and do what is best for the citizens of this country.   Everyone who voted for this needs to have his sorry ass run out of office.  We have been passive for too long.  You need to call your representative and your senator and if he voted for that bill let him have it!!!!!

If you are not willing to do this for yourself think of your children and grandchildren because they are going to get the brunt of this.  I heard a statistic that in three generations humanity will be completely sterile from GMO foods and I would have to add to that, if humanity is still alive from eating GMO's to get sterile.

As you can tell, this has hit my hot button.  Seeds are sacred and they have been given to us by God. Our food is our medicine and that is how God designed it to be.  This has to be stopped!