Douglas Subbiondo - Nature Works - San Francisco, California - Personal Vegan Chef - Landscaper

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nightshades -- to some

delicious, sacred, poisonous, magical, medicinal, deadly, scary, intense, special, delectable, psychotropic, dangerous

Solanaceae -- the latin nomial of a plant family -- much loved -- and much maligned.

Imagine being, if you please: as earthy and fine as Potatoes -- as tangy and versatile as Tomatoes -- as remarkable as Eggplants (of which, Turkish people alone have devised more than 1,000 preparations) -- as spicy and bold and Chiles, Peppers -- as fragrant and intoxicating as pure Tobacco -- and yet, because of the family (your family, if still role playing -- think aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents), entire diets, and groups of people, steer well clear of (you, and) all of the above, on principle, and more. Macrobiotic dieters, for instance, maintain such a profound respect for Solanaceae's stimulating properties (extreme Yin energy), they are simply excluded from regular dietary rotation. To be personally clear, I believe the Macrobiotic diet to be elegance incarnate -- delicately balanced, wholesomely conceived, and in able hands, positively delicious. Call it perhaps, then, a personal tendency, or leaning -- of mine -- to be wholly fascinated with the lot of Solanums.

Tobacco is universally recognized, among the native peoples of the Americas, as sacred and healing. It is ostensibly first -- among offerings made to people, plants, and the earth itself. Its curative properties are present in all forms of the plant. The smoke itself is blown on the bodies of life to protect and heal those forms from abounding hazards.

Brugmansia, pictured above, is associated with a selfish and generous spirit whose magnanimity is rarely felt without a dedicated allegiance to said plant and spirit. (Do not mess with).

The center of genetic diversity for the Solanaceae family is Equatorial America, though its presence is global. This is of significance because the family has been largely undisturbed by the ice ages that slated clean, land under glaciers, and has had ages to adapt to the extreme ecological niches of the region. Simply phrased, the older and more adapted the line, the more creatively structured.

The Solanaceae family is regarded botanically as narcissistic -- meaning leaf litter from within the family is especially appreciated as compost to other members growing locally. Allegiance seems to be a theme among nightshades -- human dependence is but one shade of this character.

This is an extraordinary family -- with more to impart and share than human civilization will likely ever get around to embracing fully. Certainly, the Solanaceae are not to be trifled with. Their demanding nature, it seems, is one of the biggest obstacles to sustained, broadly experienced understanding. Virtually anything less than complete respect, and near subservience occasionally, may yield something akin to wrath. (Mercifully, the commonly edible varieties are gentler).

I am but an admirer. An appreciator. A cultivator. An eater. Solanums to me are a fascination. I know them not at all, I report to you accurately. But I appreciate them with a divined awareness, and a certainty that, when near, I am in the presence of majesty.

namasté

'Irish' (Andean) Potato flowers

Posted 2/27/2008 link |

West Coast Seafood Guide

If you will, sustainability trumps.

Click above to enlarge. For the printable wallet reference guide, visit the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch.

Posted 2/25/2008 link |

save a fish. roll your own.

Let's consider the Bluefin Tuna.

These magnificent creatures -- up to 12 feet long, weighing as much as 1,500 pounds, traveling in large schools, and deftly navigating the ocean at speeds of up to 40 miles per hour -- are commensurate with the American Bison in grandeur and largess.

The relatively sudden collapse of Bluefin Tuna stocks is less apparent than the comparative disappearance of the bison -- at least in part because we do not share their deep blue home. Nevertheless, through a reckless combination of market demand, governmental subsidies, and overwhelming technological fishing advantage, the Bluefin Tuna population may be at less than 10 percent of its level measured in 1970 (to say nothing of where it may have been when giant Tunas were painted on walls of sacred caves at the dawn of history). Whole schools of Bluefin Tuna -- guided by evolution to surface for reproduction -- are spotted easily by airplanes searching for the giant silver creatures splashing and reflecting the sky. A call is quickly made to a fishing fleet on the water, which swiftly, and mechanically, encircles the school, and nets every fish -- up to 3,000 at a time. These fish will then likely be herded to penned sea ranches, and fed oily little fish to fatten them for market sale throughout the year.

According to National Geographic Magazine the present rate of tuna harvesting is more than 4 times a remotely sustainable rate, and nearly as many times over and above the quotas and regulations drawn to protect the stock. These fish are deliberately overfished. Meanwhile, as the market is flooded with tuna all year, the return on each fish drops, inspiring the fishermen to catch more tuna. As consumers we may choose to withdraw our support from unsustainable industries and fisheries -- indeed, for the Bluefin Tuna, consumer choice is certainly more powerful than un-heeded, un-enforced legislation.

For fisheries worldwide, the mere presence and operation of all 4 million-some fishing boats in the world -- more than double the necessary amount to fish within the oceans' means -- result in an insatiable drive that is crippling the oceans' ecosystems. No one has to give up sushi. But now, maybe rolling our own creatively makes more sense than ever. Have fun with it. Even the messies look cool:

Most folks have at least heard of these women -- now, you may watch Isa Chandra and Terry Hope roll sushi at home, in the Post Punk Kitchen.

Posted 2/24/2008 link |

pilaf construction

fragrant seeds and pepper (toasted)

olive oil

collard stems

onions

garlic

carrots

collard greens

+ grains and beans (cooked ahead)

scallions

remember: this is flexible and versatile cooking. some semblance of considered sequence rewarded, sure. but this can be anything.

Posted 2/07/2008 link |

evolution

Posted 2/02/2008 link |

agrarian hero, Wendell Berry

"Industrialism separated utility and beauty. If a thing was functional, it didn't make any difference how it looked, and I think you can only go so far with that. If a thing is ugly, I think we need to ask questions about it. How did it get that way? What else is wrong?"

excerpted from Heifer International's 'World Ark'

Posted 2/02/2008 link |

public service -- consumer marketing

a.k.a. junk mail

there exists a company that, when commissioned, delivers our names, addresses, and unique demographic information to companies desiring to expand their consumer base.

this same company makes it quite easy to omit one's name from their list of out-going addresses.

simply e-mail them at this address: