Happy blogging!

Sitting in my classroom watching my students create their own blogs on their shiny new IPads is actually more exciting and inspiring than I might have imagined. My growing cynicism and disenchantment with my community's public education system has hit a roadblock...and I like it....I like it a lot.

This group of very bright students has taken on a new challenge with enthusiasm and I look forward to following their blogs on a wide range of sociological topics (after all, this is sociology class).  Already their blog titles have blown me away: "Right on the Marx," "There is More to Self than Mead's the I," and "Garfinkel's Homie."  The class is a public education teacher's ideal situation and if only all of my classes could be made up of students exactly like these.

In the interest of continuing my own blog (which my husband and 6-year-old son were apparently not as excited about as I thought they'd be), and in the interest of my students' interest in my blog (whew, lots of 'interests' here), I am posting one of my favorite recipes for all to try.

Nectarine ginger wontons
12 wonton skins (found in the produce section of your grocer)
1 package of firm tofu
1/4 cup ginger dressing (also found in produce section)
2 or 3 finely chopped nectarines or any fruit of your choice (pineapple works well)
1 cup of any firm shredded cheese you like (I usually use cheddar)
S & P

Line muffin pan with wonton skins. I spray pan with organic veg spray first. Blend tofu and ginger dressing together. Mix in remaining ingredients. Fill wontons with a good scoop of mixture and bake about 25 minutes in 325 degree oven. Delish and nutrish!  Enjoy and always, always, always use organic ingredients whenever possible.

Wedge Issues, Politicians and Your Body

One of my friends inspired me to start a blog, a pastime my husband and I have poked fun at for several years now. "Who do these people think they are and why do they think anyone cares about what they have to say?" The truth is, I have been bombarded with email forwards and facebook posts of other people's blogs and have enjoyed reading quite a few of them.  But, alas, I will stick to the title topic and the reason I felt compelled to start a blog. I am a vegetarian. My 6-year-old son is a vegetarian. My husband, however, is not a vegetarian, but more on that later.

One of my grad school professors first introduced me to the idea of wedge issues and how politicians use them to divide and conquer. For those of you who aren't familiar, wedge issues include any hot media topic that affects a small portion of the population and evokes extreme emotional response from both sides of the political spectrum.  Currently and unfortunately there are only two sides of that spectrum, which of course includes liberals and conservatives. And for those of you who are like me and consider yourselves somewhere on the fringe of either, believe me, we are a small minority in this country. Politicians have historically used wedge issues to garner votes and since Richard Nixon, have been solely responsible for the election of presidents, congressmen (and women) and representatives.

But I digress.  This blog will hopefully help shed light on the issues that affect all of us: that which goes into our bodies both voluntarily and involuntarily.  On a daily basis and no matter where we live in this country we breathe filthy polluted air, drink filthy polluted water and eat filthy polluted food. There is plenty of scientific evidence to back this up so I will let you google that yourselves.  Too many of my friends and family have battled cancer, illness (both physical and mental) and obesity which I am absolutely and unequivocally, 100% certain is due in large part to environmental factors.  Some of it we can control, however, much of it we cannot.  I will be sharing information that affects ALL of us: not just whites, not just wealthy, not just blacks, not just gays, not just disabled, not just libertarians, not just immigrants, not just........you get the idea.

Please note that the word "vegetarian" is overused, misused and quite often abused.  My son and I, on occasion, do eat locally caught fish which would logically place us into the "pescetarian" category but because I despise esoteric labels, I am sticking to the vegetarian one since most people are acquainted with it and have a strong opinion of it either way.  In this blog I will share personal recipes which I believe to be healthy, quick, easy and delicious ways to add to our otherwise unhealthy and toxic daily consumption of foods, gasses and liquids.