Don't Forget To Vote!

With all the media attention and water cooler conversations I don't know how anyone will let November 4th come and go without remembering to vote. I just wanted to remind everyone that early voting is going on right now. I went and voted this afternoon and the whole process took about 8 minutes total. It was so easy!

Things I Love About Fall

While I have certain things I love about each season I have to admit that Fall is my favorite! Here are a few things I love about Fall (in no particular order)...


1. Beautiful Colors of the Leaves
2. Cool Weather
3. Cute Jackets
4. Scarves
5. Fresh Crisp Air
6. Seasonal Smells and Flavors
7. Football games
8. Pumpkin Carving
9. Apple cider
10. Hayrides
11. Mums
12. The smell of burning leaves
13. Halloween
14. Trick-or-treating
15. Cozy Blankets
16. Bonfires
17. Thanksgiving
18. Soups, Stews, and Chili
19. Pumpkin Patches
20. THE CHRISTMAS VILLAGE at Nashville State Fair Grounds!!!

Hope everyone has a very happy Fall!

The Story of Edgar Sawtelle

When I read a great book I have to tell everyone I know. A couple weeks ago Oprah announced "The Story of Edgar Sawtelle" by David Wroblewski as her new pick for her book club. As mentioned in previous posts, I love to read and I especially love the books that Oprah picks!

As I was listening to Oprah describe this book I new immediately I would be heading to Borders to make a purchase. I am not going to give anything away, but those of you that are interested in possibly reading this book I will pass along the two things Oprah shared with her viewers. First, DO NOT read the insert of the book. She says it gives away to much of the story. I finished this book about a week ago and still haven't read the insert. The second thing Oprah said was that if you are a dog lover you will love this book (and it is true). The book just holds special meaning for those of you that are dog owners/lovers. Please hear me when I say you don't have to be a dog lover to really appreciate this book, but if you are it makes it that much better.

This book is 562 pages and I finished it in four days. I couldn't put it down. If you have read it I would love to hear your comments about the book. To any others that might read it, I hope you enjoy!

Food for Thought

Here is something I bet most people don't know about me...I am a vegetarian!

I want everyone to know that this is not going to be some "come jump on the band wagon" type entry. This is a personal decision that I have made. Mike is still eating meat, and I don't think any less of him or anyone else that does. I decided a few weeks ago that I would try to make a life change and become a vegetarian. Before starting this journey I wanted to make sure it was something that was right for me and I also wanted to make sure it was something that I did correctly and wholeheartedly. So this entry has a two fold reason. One is to explain myself and beliefs, and two is to help give any guidance or information for others that think this is a way of life they would like to try.

Here are the two reasons why I have decided to change what I eat...

Reason #1: Mike and I have been transitioning to all organic products. It has been a slow transition and we still have a lot to go. But the one item that Mike and I were at a standstill on purchasing was organic meat. He said it was too expensive and I thought that the health benefits outweighed the cost. So I bought a vegetarian cookbook and figured I would cook primarily vegetarian so we could buy/eat all organic.

Reason #2: Mike and I have been checking out documentaries from the library. They have a great selection and the best part is that they are FREE! A few days after I bought the vegetarian cookbook, one of the documentaries that I brought home was called "I Am Animal: The Story of Ingrid Newkirk and PETA". I am an avid animal lover and I knew of PETA, but I didn't really know what PETA was. So I thought I would watch this documentary to expand my knowledge on animal rights. As soon as I brought it home Mike said he was not going to watch it. So I watched it by myself. I am glad I watched it, but at the same time I wish that I hadn't. It was very disturbing, but also very eye opening.

When I think of animal rights I think of puppy mills or household pets that are being starved or mistreated. Before this documentary I have never thought of the chickens, turkeys, pigs, & cows that we all eat everyday. I have never thought about how they are raised, treated, & killed. This documentary didn't go into too much detail about the slaughter houses of farm animals (thank the Lord!), but it did show just enough clips that I know I don't agree with it. This film also made me realize that I don't want to do anymore homework or research on the cruelty treatment of animals because what little they showed was so horrifying to me. So after watching this documentary I had made a decision to try out the whole vegetarian thing.

So, for a month now I have been a successful vegetarian. Luckily Mike and I are not picky eaters and we are willing to try everything (that includes tofu and lentils- which are really yummy:). I am really impressed with all the vegetarian recipes that are floating around on the Internet. There is a ton of variety and they are all really flavorful. I have found some really great vegetarian entrees that I will share in later posts.

So far my experience has been a positive one. I haven't really been able to find any cons to being a vegetarian. The best tip I can give is to make sure you plan your meals ahead. That way when you go grocery shopping you will be able to buy everything you need for the week. I was used to being able to pull chicken or turkey from the freezer if I was in a pinch. Now I've learned to be a little more creative, especially when it comes to using leftover produce before it goes bad.

Eating out at restaurants hasn't been difficult at all. There is normally plenty of items to choose from on most menus. If a restaurant doesn't offer a vegetarian entree, then I usually eat salads, soups and sides such as sweet potatoes, baked potatoes, and steamed veggies.

I am starting my fifth week of being a vegetarian and I feel great! I sit here now and think "4 weeks without any meat, wow!" I am now trying to educate myself on being a healthy vegetarian by researching on the Internet and reading a ton of books. So if anyone has any pointers I would love to hear them.

Update: Protect Our Children Bill

Just wanted to let everyone know that this week Senate Bill 1738, the Protect Our Children Bill, PASSED! Thanks to all of you who helped support this bill by calling, emailing, or writing your senators.

Saturday Morning Fun

I bet no one can guess how I spent two hours of my Saturday morning...Give up? I had to get gasoline. That's right, I waited for two hours in line at Kroger to get gas. I have not been able to find gas for several days now and only had about 60 miles of gas left in the tank (by the time I pulled up to the tank I only had 42 miles left). Those of you who don't live in Nashville may not know that Nashville has had an EXTREME gas shortage for the last week. I thought it was a problem all over the US, but after talking to a few people that don't live in Nashville, I found out it is simply a Nashville problem.

So, I woke up this morning and called Kroger to see if they had gas. Before I could even ask my question the man on the other line told me they had gas, they would only have it for a limited time, there were about 200 cars in the parking lot waiting, and that I needed to get down there quick. So I threw on shoes and grabbed my purse and that is how I came to wait in line for 2 hours.

I wish I would have had my camera with me. Not only were the lines of cars in the parking lot something to see. I also got to watch a car be swarmed with several angry people cursing and threatening the driver because he cut in line.

Mike said he heard on the news today that Nashville has used as much gas in one week that we usually use in a month, and that is mostly due to hurricane Ike evacuees that have travelled up to Nashville. Luckily, now both Mike and I have full tanks and hopefully by the time we need to fill up again this problem will be solved.

Protect the Children

Many of you are aware that I have an Oprah addiction. I just finished watching Oprah's show from yesterday about "Online Child Predators". It was mind boggling, upsetting, sickening, informative, but most of all it was moving. I hope some of you were able to watch it, but at the same time those of you with children (especially daughters) this would have been an incredibly hard episode to deal with.

I will not go into detail, but I do want to say that these people will stop at nothing to find a way to enjoy themselves. I was completely surprised by some of the information given during this show. It is like the Child Predators think of the internet as a secret hiding place to do their illegal acts. Luckily, technology is catching up and it isn't as easy to hide anymore.

Everyday there are task forces and programs out there that are monitoring the online activity and finding these people. The unfortunate part is that there are so many online predators and there isn't enough manpower and money to capture the majority of them.

So here is where you can help. There is a bipartisan bill that the Senate will be voting on soon. The bill is Senate Bill 1738, it is called the Protect our Children Act. Go to this Oprah Show link, once there click on the "senate.gov" link to look up your states senators. After you have the contact information for your senators: call, email, and write them (there is a sample letter on Oprah's page). Ask them to vote for this bill. If this bill passes it will provide the man power and resources to help find these predators, but most importantly it will help keep children from harms way. Hurry because the senate will recess September 26th.