Monday News

Welcome to the Monday News!  From now on I hope to feature a bit of news on most Mondays.  These entries will include vegan and animal-related info. that I've picked up the previous week from other blogs and news sources.  Feel free to list any news you've picked up in the comments and let me know your views on recent happenings.



Happy Birthday Cameron!
Cameron turned 6 today :)  Isn't he a handsome fella?!

Lion Burgers in Mesa, Arizona
Many of you probably read about this horror in the last couple of weeks.  I would like to thank Vegansaurus for informing me about it.  Supposedly the meat was sourced from a free-range farm in Illinois.  Oddly enough, it seems that the owner hadn't really done his research.  The meat was purchased from Czimer's Game & Sea Foods, but don't worry it's in Illinois.  This guy Czimer has sold tiger, lion, and liger meat (amongst other things).  And where did he get his lion meat?  Well, he doesn't plan to reveal that, but it's from a man who runs a skinning operation.  So at least more of the animal is getting used and his operation seems to be USDA approved.  But if you ask me, the whole thing makes me sick!  You see, according to these articles lions are not endangered, but why is no one concerned with the fact that their population is rapidly decreasing and they are red-listed as a vulnerable species?  

BP's Continued Distaster Now Includes Burning Sea Turtles
Thank you Vegan.com for the heads up.  BP's recent active solution to clean up their mess involved controlled burns.  They just happen to be burning up turtles, such as the endangered species Kemp's Ridley, along the way.  In the process, BP prevented those involved in rescue operations from doing their part.  Thanks goes to many animal welfare groups who have stepped in to discourage this sort of activity from continuing, for now at least.

Jasmine, a Greyhound Hero
Early last month the Kind Life featured a fantastic story about a hound with a huge heart :)  This girl has a truly wonderful gift and I hope that all of you read her story!

If you have any news you would like included next week, please send me an e-mail.  Does your pet or animal friend have a birthday coming up?  Send me an e-mail with a picture and I'll post a shout-out :)

Crafty Contests

There are a couple of contests you might not want to miss out on!

 TreeWool:  Are you a knitter or crafter?  Then check out this interview with Vegancraftastic and enter when some goods ;)






Speaking of Vegancraftastic, get over to her blog for a chance to write down your thoughts and dreams in a new pocket journal made by Studio827 KC.

And stay tuned!  I will be having a Giveaway of my own very soon...

Here are so more artistic and crafty blogs that I have recently discovered that you might enjoy ;)
My Zoetrope
The Sassy Crafter
Journal Artista
Herbivore Knits
Do Stuff Blog
iHanna's Blog: Create and Live Happy
GPP Network Street Team
Woven Letters
Creating FTW!
Film and Thread
Carbon Torbus

Know of any other great contests or arts/crafts blogs?  Feel free to post the link ;)

Nutty for Nut Butters

It's Thursday...question day!

What is your favorite nut butter?  And how do you like to eat it?  If you have a delightfully nutty recipe, please share!  (I realize seed butters are becoming popular, as well, so feel free to discuss those, too.)

Adam and I have grown quite fond of cashew butter.  It's creamier than peanut butter and so delicious.  Our weekday morning breakfast consists of a bowl of oats, seeds, dried fruit, etc. - topped with a generous helping of cashew butter :)  We usually buy East Wind Community cashew butter.  Lucky for us they are located in Tecumseh, MO, which makes it a "small footprint" buy AND it tastes wonderful!

Test Kitchen Tuesday

More delicious things have appeared in the kitchen thanks to Krys at Two Vegan Boys (click to see the last selection).  What sorts of things you ask?  Oh...Black bean and Corn Quinoa with lime dressing, Avocado Cashew Enchiladas, Curried Mustard Greens with Chickpeas, Roasted Coconut Carrot Soup, and Carrot Maple Muffins.  All of them wonderful! 
We couldn't find mustard greens at the time and subbed whatever we could find at the store, which still turned out quite well.  Unfortunately we were unable to find any tomatillos at the time, but someday we will get to try the luscious tomatillo sauce over the enchiladas.  On their own (with Follow Your Heart) they were wonderful and creamy, although they could have definitely used a sauce.  I am not much of a carrot soup fan, but this one was amazing!  And I will gladly feast on it again :)  Below are some of these wonderful things.

Overboard with Anxiety

I'm going to sidetrack from my current blog agenda for a more personal note.  I happened on a new blog today (Yummy Raw Kitchen) and was inspired by this post.  And because I've seen it a few times now on various blogs and think it's grand, here's an inspiring photo:

We all, at least sometimes, have issues that we would like to resolve.  Recently I was able to put a name to some of the crap I have been experiencing - ANXIETY.  And it's wonderful to know and be able to identify what's going on with you.  More and more I have realized that some of my emotions are a little out of control.  It's not the sort of thing you know about unless you live with me (I don't think).  But my mind will sometimes be constantly churning, feeling pressure that doesn't exist.  Expecting what I think others must be expecting of me.  Does that sound a little loony?  Well it is!  And recently I've determined that I'm not so sure I can just practice mind control to work it out.  So, I've been looking at herbs and vitamins that might do the trick.  My trial cure of choice (as of yesterday) is Niacinamide.  It is a vitamin and comes from niacin (vitamin B3).  I have read many good things about it and am very excited.

Today I am extremely happy because I have taken it for the first time and think it may already be helping.  Maybe it's just a quieter day for me, but some of my anxious thoughts have seemed less existent today.  And it's quite pleasant :)  Thanks for letting me get that out of my system.  It's nice to talk about.

So, what are you happy about?  (And if anyone is interested in Gluten Free cooking I would love to read your thoughts, please check out my last entry ;)

Your Thoughts on Thursday

As I mentioned on Mon., Thursday is my new space to ask a question (or two) and get your thoughts.  Feel free to give as lengthy a response as you desire!  And feel free to e-mail me with ideas for future Thursdays.

What are your favorite gluten free flours and recipes?  I am very interested in the details, so if you have any tips on mixing gluten free flours or on other ingredients to use with them, feel quite free to elaborate! (You can even mention the things you don't like)

Some Gluten Free blogs and websites to check out (not necessarily vegan):
Alternative Flours on allrecipes.com
Book of Yum
Celiac Sprue Assoc. Flour List 
Celiac Sprue Association Recipes
Celiac.com
Gluten Free on Fat Free Vegan
Gluten-free Girl and the Chef
Gluten Free Gobswacked
Gluten Free Goddess
 Gluten Free Mommy
Gluten Free Vegan
Information on Vegfamily

More to Come

I've been away from the blogging world for a couple of weeks.  But I'm back.  And what can you expect in the near future?  Some cookbook reviews (Sweet Utopia, Speed Vegan), more images of luscious testings for Krys at Two Vegan Boys, garden pics and other musings.  Be sure to lend me your thoughts on upcoming Thursdays.  On Thursdays I will be asking for your thoughts on a variety of topics, such as: ingredients, tools, veganism, gardening, etc.  I am always interested in what I can learn from others.  If you have curiosities of your own feel free to e-mail me with ideas for future Thursdays.

And for any who don't know, that giant of a cat above is my boy Cameron ;)