This is basically part 2 of yesterday's post. Remember my list? Well item number 2 was a Facebook post about rainwater capture. The post was actually a share of a share from a website. I confess that I didn't bother to read the entire article, opting instead to skim it; because what I did read proved that the person writing it is an angry whiner.

 

The article is about how rainwater collection is illegal in most states. Well, I don't know about "most" states, but I do know about Utah; the same Utah specifically mentioned in the article. The author made pains to suggest that rainwater collection in Utah is illegal - which it isn't; but because the author didn't bother to indicate when their example occurred, I can't say for sure (and frankly, I don't care to do all the legwork to find out) that it happened before or after the new law was implemented. Regardless, rainwater collection has been legal in Utah since May of 2010.

 

So what's my issue with this article (apart from the lack of dates and facts)? The issue is the total lack of responsibility repeatedly exercised by people. The Utah example was about someone who set up a rainwater capture system without first checking the rules. The author then goes on (ad nauseum) about how Americans shouldn't have to have permission from the government to capture rainwater. Well, I disagree.

 

In society today, there is a complete lack of understanding with regard to the need for rules (laws). The attitude is that all laws are bad and we should all be able to govern ourselves as we see fit. Well that would be great if everyone governed themselves with the same moral standards! Unfortunately, they don't.

 

The current gun debate in the US is a perfect example of this. The US already has gun laws and those laws should be sufficient to regulate and protect; and they would be, except for those people who think they can do whatever they want, so violate the laws we already have! (And, by the way, enacting stricter gun control laws isn't going to stop the problem at all - RE: Chicago gun-free zone if you don't believe me)

 

Rules are not the enemy. They exist to protect people, animals, the environment. A basic set of laws is necessary because humans are selfish creatures and many, when left to their own devices, will take advantage of others. Do I like having to get permission to do what I want? No, but I understand why some regulation is necessary and it bothers me when people, who didn't bother to check the laws, get their panties in a wad when they find out there are laws.

 

So what's the answer? Be responsible! Before you build a new structure on your property, find out what the regulations are! Before you set up a rainwater capture system, find out what the regulations are! Before you buy those dozen chickens, find out what the regulations are! Before you do anything, find out what the regulations are! You'll save yourself a lot of stress, time, and money in the long run. And if you choose not to check first? Then don't get bent out of shape when the government comes along and tells you you've broken the law.

Yes, this is post numero due for today. Don't freak out, I've done it before. I wrote the other because I wanted it to be know that I know...y'know? But I'm writing this entry for three reasons: 1) I actually do have better things to do than waste time on a man who is clearly devoid of any and all integrity (although I'm not ruling out the possibility of posting a letter I'm writing that I want him to read); 2) because of an FB post about rainwater capture; and 3) because of a comment about non-moldy bread.

 

As you know, I've posted a couple times about the atrocious state of the world's food supply. Well, after the last post I just started bookmarking all the articles that were cropping up, almost daily, about the vile nastiness we're consuming; and I've now amassed so many that it's high time I clear out my bookmark menu! Because of that, we're going to work through my list backwards.

 

Before we begin, I suggest getting some snacks and pulling up a comfy chair, cuz this is going to take a while (and I'm not even going to get to number 2 in this post).

 

I was talking with my mother last night and she mentioned that, after talking with me and other family members about all the food-related creepy grossness, she started noticing that the bread wasn't getting moldy any more, or at least, not like it should. I told her about the people who have bought fast food burgers and left them out, some for a decade or more, and what has, or hasn't, happened to them. Surely you've all seen the pictures floating around Facebook? If not, the basic story is, the burgers aren't degrading...at all. Why should that freak you out? Think about it.

 

But what else is going on with our food? Well, milk in Germany has turned up with cancer-causing fungus that is suspected to be from contaminated cow feed from Serbia.

 

In France, a restaurant just outside of Paris was shut down when inspectors discovered a pot of boiling caterpillars on the stove, and meat with no veterinary certificates showing origin.

 

In Denmark, the world famous Noma restaurant was given a formal warning for being the source of a Roskilde Sickness outbreak in 63 guests over a 5 day period of service. Roskilde Sickness is a norovirus (food poisoning) that causes vomiting and diarrhea. The warning came after complaints of food poisoning prompted a visit by inspectors who discovered that there had been illness among employees who couldn't properly wash their hands because there was no hot water in the staff hand-washing taps.

 

In the US, Whole Foods Market, Inc, will require all products sold in it's US and Canadian stores to be labels as either GMO or organic by 2018. At present, the US doesn't require any kind of safety testing for GMO's before they go to market as the food industry claims they're safe, despite an almost total lack of independent research verifying their claims.

 

In Switzerland, IKEA's restaurants sold 720 chocolate almond cakes containing coliform bacteria (which includes E. coli). Chinese authorities reportedly destroyed almost 1900 kg of the same cakes because of excessive levels of coliform bacteria. The presence of coliform bacteria is used as an indicator of sanitary quality of foods and water.

 

Also in Switzerland, a Swiss laboratory found traces of pork in seven out of twenty tests conducted on kebabs sold in several Swiss cities. Although the tests show low proportion, Jewish and Muslim tradition forbids the eating of pork.

 

As if messing with our food isn't bad enough, two Swiss retailers have removed various shoe models from their stores after tests found they contained a cancer-causing chemical. The chemical, Chromium 6, is a toxic byproduct of chromium, widely used to tan leather.

 

In Sweden, grocery chain ICA ordered a recall of two meat products over concerns they may contain horsemeat. After the first lasagne horsemeat scandal, ICA began testing it's own meat products labeled as beef. Preliminary tests show at least two products are positive for horsemeat.

 

In February, fears of additional horsemeat contamination caused IKEA to halt the sale of additional meat products after tests by a meatball supplier showed positive results.

 

In Norway, pork contaminated "halal" meat was discovered in kebab meat and pizza toppings. The contaminated meat was found in both grocery stores and fast food eateries.

 

Even pets aren't safe; in March, Natura Pet recalled several pet foods due to salmonella contamination. During random sampling by the FDA, salmonella was found to be present in at least one of Natura Pet's products.

 

In Sweden, one of the few bright sides to the horsemeat scandal is that contaminated frozen lasagne being pulled from store shelves was going to be made available for the homeless of Stockholm. (Do I need to remind people that the issue with the horsemeat contamination was never that it contained horsemeat, but that it was labeled as being 100% beef?)

 

In the UK, a Health Protection Agency investigation linked pre-packaged salads to around 300 Cryptosporidium infections in England and Scotland. Cryptosporidium causes the diarrhea illness Cryptosporidiosis, and is closely related to Plasmodia (malaria parasite) and Toxoplasma (toxoplasmosis parasite).

 

In Sweden, more trouble for IKEA. The company halted sales of elkmeat lasagne when it tested positive for pork in a Belgian lab.

 

Still in Sweden, Sweden's National Food Agency (Livsmedelsverket), asked prosecutors to investigate a company believed to have labeled Polish horsemeat as Swedish beef tenderloin. Apparently, they can't even be sure where this mystery meat came from because the documentation is so sketchy.

 

In the US, the food industry has such control over the FDA that at least 13 substances, banned in other countries because of their health risks, are legal in the US.

 

Again in Sweden, the Swedish Institute for Communicable Disease Control (Smittskyddinstitutet) has warned that frozen berries may have been responsible for 22 cases of Hepatitis A in Sweden, and appears to be linked to a 30-person outbreak in Denmark.

 

In Germany, apparently more than 100 German food retailers have been buying misrepresented meat for at least two years. A Dutch abattoir was selling the meat, horse, as beef and has sold some 50,000 tons of the stuff to at least 124 German butchers.

 

In Spain, more than 4% of all meat being sold as beef actually contains horse. Four areas of Spain have reported that their "beef" contains horse.

 

Once again Sweden! In April, IKEA looked to sell or give away it's horsemeat contaminated meatballs. If that wasn't possible, they hoped to use them as biogas.

 

In the US, biotech company Ventria Bioscience is making GMO rice with human DNA. They are splicing human liver genes into rice DNA with the intent of using this "Frankenrice" in the production of pharmaceuticals.

 

And finally (for now)...

 

In Spain, health authorities in Navarre have discovered E. coli in spaghetti meals, and at least one plate of lasagne containing listeria, prepared for Navarre's hospitals by a private company. Apparently the company, Mediterránea de Catering, has a history of poor hygiene, food handling, and workplace accidents.

 

 

BELOW: Originally captioned on Facebook by Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company as: Even the squirrels know.

 

When in the course of human events

Fate takes a turn for the worse,

Oft' times it eases the troubled soul

To put it all down in verse

 

I wrote that years ago (it's actually part of a longer poem), but I've found myself quoting it A LOT the last few weeks. If you've been keeping up with the blog then you know I've had some issues with someone I thought was a friend. Well, things are really heating up!

 

From the beginning, I've made it clear that I just want to know why he lied. But I guess he's too big a coward to tell me (still not sure what he thinks he's gaining by this, but hey, he's a jerk, I guess they don't need logical reasons for the crap they do).

 

Anyway, since he won't just do the right thing, I've asked some of his friends to tell him to contact me. Well, instead of doing that, I guess they decided that they would try trolling me instead. Honestly, that was the most fun I've had since this thing began. I guess they think my admittance of craziness means I'm stupid or something (which is fine, you go ahead and think I'm stupid). Well that's okay too; because I, and my friends, know I'm actually brilliant. But, of course, it takes one to know one - which explains why they didn't recognize me. Better luck next time guys.

 

I've already discussed the fact that I recently discovered that a "friend" was lying to me. Normally I don't like to name names, but I admit that I'm sorely tempted to do so this go around. Why? Because, frankly, he deserves to be "outed." But I'm going to keep that name to myself, yet again, for my own purposes (and again, those of you who know me already know to whom I'm referring).

 

So why am I writing this today? Because I'm fed up. This situation never needed to exist in the first place because he never should have lied (and I'm still trying to figure out what he thought he was gaining by doing so). But he did. And I'm dealing with that. Some people have suggested that I may be "overreacting" to this situation. Am I? Honestly, I think not. People have gotten it into their heads that lying is okay. That lying will somehow "fix" the mess they're in. I'm here to tell you, that's just not the case.

 

Maybe you've heard the saying, "honesty is the best policy"? Well, it's actually true. Shocking, I know. But yeah, honesty really is the best policy. Lying destroys trust, and without trust, well, think about it. If you were an employer would you hire someone you can't trust? Not unless you're stupid. Would you trust a crook with sensitive information? Not unless you're stupid. So am I overreacting? No, because I'm not a mushroom, and I won't be treated like one.

 

And here's the best part...this "douche packing queef bag" is merely dragging out everyone's misery by refusing to explain his behavior (would he lie about it? Most likely. But I'll be taking everything he says with a grain of salt - and so should all of you; his "friends - and really, you think he's your friend?? HA ha ha ha, yeah, he's your friend alright, I could tell you "friends" of his a few stories). That's all I want, the truth! And I've made that clear. Which is why I don't understand why he won't just give it.

 

Am I overreacting? No. Because, in the immortal words of Gotye: "...the saddest thing is, all of it could have been avoided." I'm walking the plank with my eyes wide open. And if you're his "friend," then so should you.

 

I haven't been posting here for a while because about mid-March some things began happening that have turned me into a complete, barely functioning basket case (as opposed to the incomplete, fairly decently functioning basket case I usually am). I won't go into detail, but the outline is:

That's it in a nutshell. Some of you know who the so-called "friend" is; for the rest of you, it really doesn't matter for the purposes of this blog.

 

I've said before, that my motto (one I developed many years ago, that has gotten me through some incredibly difficult situations) is: Never give up; never give in; only change tactics. Giving up and/or giving in should never be options. They cause you to lose your own personal power. They strip you of your dignity and hurt you at least as much as the fight. But sometimes changing tactics can seem as though you are giving up; not so! Sometimes you have to "move on" in order to achieve your goals, and sometimes your original goal cannot be reached (because of this tremendously annoying thing called "free agency") and a new one must be set. But surely you've heard it said that the best revenge is to be a success?

 

<digression>I really don't like the phrase "move on" because it implies, at least in my mind, a certain amount of "giving up." It sounds like you've just dropped everything and gone a different way, with very little, if any, serious consideration of the overall situation. Call it semantics, but "changing tactics" suggests that you've thoroughly considered all your options, you've seen what works/has worked and what doesn't/hasn't, and you've now changed your methods to conform to that.</digression>

 

Anyway, I know what the lies are, I just don't know why the lies are (I could venture a guess, but what's the point? - and don't Grammar Nazi me, I know that's poor grammar, it was intentional). And it's not the content of the lies that have been the source of my wound anyway - and being lied to can often beat out physical pain in a side-by-side comparison - no, it's not the content, it's the fact that he lied at all.

 

I know there's been a lot of junk floating around Facebook about how if someone lies to you it's because they didn't think you were worth the truth, as in, being lied to is predominantly your own fault, but I think that's only part of the problem; see, it ain't all about you. There's a certain undercurrent of fear that goes along with lying as well, and that's the sole responsibility of the person doing the lying. But regardless of it's cause, lying is not an answer to your problems. I don't know what he thought he was gaining by lying, but if he had been honest with me from the get, I can guarantee I wouldn't have reacted the way he thought I would have. You see, I'm not an unreasonable person, and I never, at any time, lead him to believe anything, so if he had fears, they were solely of his own creation - he needed no help from me, thanks.

 

This whole episode has really tested my reserves of strength, and in my darkest moments (the ones in which I wasn't actively cursing him to God) I've been tempted to just give up. Fortunately, I was blessed (or cursed, depending on which side of The Depression you're standing on) with the spirit of a dragon and a bull, and previous soul-searching has given me the tools to come out of this alive (despite how alluring lying down and dying is, it serves no purpose), and one of those tools is music. And every now and then, a certain song will give me the answer I wasn't able to find on my own.