why the local strawberry? part 1

I'm finally getting around to the post I was going to write yesterday...and I'm happy I waited because I had a little inspiration this afternoon--a wonderful, delicious and beautiful cake made with the first local strawberries of the season by my friend J. We are lucky indeed to have such a talented friend--and one generous enough to share!

J and I have been talking a lot about locally grown food, which is something we both feel passionate about. As the locavore movement gains steam nationally, I've seen several articles questioning the value of eating locally. Most of the questions involve the concept of "food miles" and carbon outputs. I'll add some links to this post if I can find some good online articles, but the most thoughtful articles I've read seem to center around these questions:

1. Are we really reducing overall carbon dioxide outputs by eating locally? In other words, is the locally-grown tomato, or beef, or ornamental plant consuming more than its share of fossil fuels during production?

2. What about the other environmental impacts of locally-grown food? An example here--what is the water cost of a locally grown tomato in, say, Arizona? What about the local milk that comes from a conventional, polluting megadairy? Is that better or worse than the trucked in milk from an organic, pastured farm? (We in Wisconsin don't have to worry too terribly much about that particular example, as there are several options for sustainably raised dairy. Take that, happy California cows!!).

3. What does "locally grown" really mean--how local is local, and how does the means of transportation affect "food miles" calculations? Is a winery in Napa more "local" in terms of environmental impact than one in Bordeaux? (Answer: depends on where you are in the United States, apparently).

4. Where should we place our efforts? After all, major industries and utilities generate an incredibly significant amount of greenhouse gases; much more than our food transportation. So, is this an example of "feel-good" activism that doesn't really have much impact?

I have a lot of thoughts about these questions, and I don't agree at all with the premise of some of these arguments that eating locally is insignificant. I am glad, however, that the questions are being asked, as it forces me to examine my reasons for being pro-local foods. Locavorism does make a positive impact, in several ways and on several things--the environment, economy, and overall quality of life. I'll explain what I mean by this in part 2...coming up soon!

ETA: Linky!

"Big Foot" - The New Yorker article that got me started on this train of thought
Food Miles and the Relative Climate Impacts of Food Choices in the United States - peer-reviewed study of, well, see the title. I will try to get a PDF of the full article for locavore committee. Interesting final sentence in the abstract about food choices that I think would be interesting to explore for the upcoming campus theme.

I have a real post for today, but as I was about to start typing it, my son decided to start a chant:

"I'm a gangster. Iiiiiiiii'm a gangster!"

What the? Where did he even hear that term? Strangely, he does not pick up any of the cursing that unfortunately still goes on around here more often than it should...but yet, he's a gangster?

Now I wonder if he's a Sopranos-style gangster, or a local Manty gangster. North sieeeeeeeede represent!

right there by town*

So, according to the Weather Channel, there is a tornado warning here right now. Except there has been nothing issued by the National Weather Service (according to their website) and the sirens are silent.

Oh, I just figured out the problem. The screen says "Manitowoc", but the woman just informed us that the tornado warning is in "Man-i-TOE-wick" county. Totally different place. heh.

I think they may be confusing tornadoes with flash floods. Hm.

*post title courtesy of the Found Footage Festival. If'n you haven't seen it, come on over to my house and we'll watch it. Mullets, chair dancing, and Jack Rebney ("accoutrements?!") abound.


P.S. Oh, ok. now supposedly there is a tornado warning for this area. But no sirens. WTF, Manitoewick County? Get with the program!

P.P.S. Sirens! This would be about the time I normally freak and force everyone into the basement, instead of sitting in my many-windowed living room. Hm. Blogging is oddly calming.

no free lunch, this is america...

So, I recognize that, although I am by no means wealthy, I live a pretty comfortable--and therefore privileged--life. Both S. (husband--) and I work, we live in an area with low cost of living, we have excellent health care benefits, we have retirement savings, we're white middle-class Americans so we don't really deal with discrimination issues, and so on. I really can't say that I know what it is like to be disadvantaged. However, last weekend I had an experience that gave me just a taste--a tiny, tiny taste--of how things might be.

As you read in the intro, I have 1.9 kids--in other words, I'm just about 35 weeks pregnant. Last weekend, I had been experiencing some pretty severe headaches. Headaches in the third trimester can be a sign of preeclampsia, which is pretty serious. At first, I wasn't too worried, because I had my blood pressure taken on Wednesday, and it was perfect. But, my doctor had told me to call if I ever experienced anything strange, so I called. Turned out my primary care OB was the doctor on call, so I got to talk to her directly--this was nice, because she knows me, knows my mindset, and my medical history.

She said that it was probably not related to my blood pressure, since I had no problems previously, and no other symptoms of preeclampsia, but that I should get it checked out anyway. Since I didn't have any other warning signs, she strongly suggested that I not get admitted, but that I go to the emergency room at my hospital, because they had a 24 hour free blood pressure clinic. These were her words, and you see that I am emphasizing them, right? She repeated herself--do not have them check you into Labor and Delivery, but tell them right away at the desk that you are there for the free blood pressure clinic. If there was a problem, she said, then they could admit me.

Okay! I can do that! So, because my head really hurt, S. said he'd go with me. The three of us went over to the hospital. We walked into the emergency room, and it was completely empty in the waiting room. I went up to the desk, and remembering the doctor's instructions, entered into the following conversation:

Admitting clerk: "Hello, dear! Can I help you?"
Me: "Hi...I am here to get my blood pressure checked in the free blood pressure clinic?"
Admitting clerk: (voice frosty, short laugh, roll of the eyes>: "This is not a free clinic. This is the emergency room."
Me: Oh.....because I've been having these problems (relays conversation I had with my doctor).
Admitting clerk: Weeeeellll....yes. We can have people come up and check your blood pressure for you, but they're really busy back there, and I'm not sure anyone would want to come up right now.
Me: ..... (not sure what to say)
Admitting clerk: Have you taken your blood pressure recently?
Me: No, my doctor just told me to come here...
Admitting clerk: Did you want to go up to labor and delivery? Do you have insurance for that? Or are you just looking for the free check?
Me: I'm just telling you what my doctor told me. She said specifically not to be admitted unless there was a reason.
Admitting clerk: What is your doctor's name? (I tell her, she calls L&D to see if the doctor had called in with any instructions. She had not). Well, I suppose you can sit over there (points to triage) and someone will come up.

And she gets me seated, and leaves with yet another eyeroll. Someone did come in and take my blood pressure, which was fine, so the story ends there. Oh yeah, and the card they gave me with my BP info advertised their 24 hour free blood pressure check service on it.

Now this was just a minor issue--I was not refused medical care in any way, and I certainly wasn't treated as poorly as some have been. At the same time, I felt awful--like I had no right to be there, even though I was acting on advice of my doctor. I wish I could tie this coherently into a discussion of the failings of the health care system, what needs to be fixed, and how to fix it...but I'm not skilled enough to write about that effectively. I do know that in a system where more and more are going without insurance, more and more are going to feel marginalized unless something does change.

well hello

So, this is my third attempt at a blog-that-is-not-Livejournal. The first two were...rather sad. I managed to post once in each, didn't tell anyone about them, and then promptly forgot. I hope to do better this time. So welcome, feel free to read and join in the conversation.

Oh, the title of the blog? The magnolia isn't actually referring to ME. I am not trying to channel any sort of "Steel Magnolia" or "delicate flower" vibe here. The magnolia is actually a tree. Really. I can see it right out my window. I hope it isn't dead from transplant shock, actually.

I suppose I could say a bunch of stuff about myself here--I always hate it when I find a new blog, and have to jump in without an introduction to the author. Then again, I will be very surprised if anyone reads this who doesn't already know me. Well, here are some basics. I'm a professor at a small school in a small "city" (feels more like a small town, with all the good and bad of small-town America) in Wisconsin. I am married, with 1.9 kids--my family is totally rad, and I will talk about them, but I really don't want to be a "mommy-blogger". I feel very strongly that my identity is more than that of mother, and I feel strongly that if that were not true, I would actually be doing a disservice to my kids. I like all sorts of things, which hopefully I'll write about in interesting entries, instead of in this intro. Oh, and I am pretty nervous that this blog is going to suck, and I hope it doesn't.