Faith & science, the balance.

[Petra Wilson]

I LOVE Jerusalem artichokes. An old friend of the out-law's grew them and they went mental, grew everywhere so he'd give us loads. Very good for the liver I think.

I'm enjoying this thread and the vids. Ta very much Sandy, for pointing me in this direction, just what I needed.

Love, Petra

[inlikeflint]

Elvis might have been alive today if he would have known about Jerusalem Artichokes.

This is a video on the Yacon tuber that is about like a jicama but sweeter than a Granny smith apple... It tastes a lot like an apple. (according to the videos.)


It is another great solution for diabetics who have a sweet tooth...

There is a site that has a guy who grew and survived off of wild/no maintenance vegetables and roots in 70 square feet of garden space. Yacon and Sunchokes were his main staple... and dandylions.

I have actually snacked on dandylion leaves and to me they are not that bad, provided that the leaves are not too large/or the plant has seeded out. ( I was wondering if they would be any good if I grew them in compost and good loose soil... Like would they get larger and the leaves become sweeter?)

Nasturtiums are also great to eat...the flowers and the leaves. There is another root called the Mashua and the leaves and root tastes just like nasturtiums... (I graze like a cow in my garden.) Turnip greens last almost all year around and can make a good winter crop if you have raised beds. (They will seed in the summer.)

[11light11]

My grandma used to always pick all the dandelions in our yard, then stew them and eat them with garlic and lemon. She said it was ancient medicine. They're super bitter; definitely an acquired taste, but supposed to be very good for you. It's funny that we regard them as a weed, when they're sisters with marigolds. What's a weed anyway?? Seems unfair to just call certain plants weeds!

[inlikeflint]

Dandylions are not so bitter if you get the leaves small and before they go to seed.
I just try them every so often,but I can see how they could fit into a nice salad with a raspberry vinaigrette...I'm making myself hungry.

Weeds/food... another man's trash is another man's treasure...

We have penny-wort that grows in our pond that we cant get rid of that some people flip out over. They say you can stir-fry it, but I have not tried it... I just end up spitting bright green grasshopper like spit when I try it.
I hauled off about 150 gallons (three trash cans) of it to the compost pile last year. The worms like it!

[inlikeflint]

Dandylions are not so bitter if you get the leaves small and before they go to seed.
I just try them every so often,but I can see how they could fit into a nice salad with a raspberry vinaigrette...I'm making myself hungry.

Weeds/food... another man's trash is another man's treasure...

We have penny-wort that grows in our pond that we cant get rid of that some people flip out over. They say you can stir-fry it, but I have not tried it... I just end up spitting bright green grasshopper like spit when I try it.
I hauled off about 150 gallons (three trash cans) of it to the compost pile last year. The worms like it!

[11light11]

Maybe you should try the pennywart again! They say our taste buds change every 15 days or something . . . Got any katniss in the pond?

[inlikeflint]

I had to look that one up... The leaves and the flowers looked familiar. (The arrow shaped leaves.)

The katniss (If that is what I have in the pond...) I don't know if I would try that. Some of those roots are mighty eye watering from the smell of bacterial break down of fish waste...most of that goes into the compost bin too!

[Petra Wilson]

Some of the locals here cover the dandelions (translated, dant=teeth de=of lions=need I explain) with a cover and eat them as a very nutritianal salad.

[Sandy]

Hello Philip, Michele, Flint and Petra,
As a gardener “wanna be”, I am enjoying all this talk about unusual garden veggies and edible weeds...If there is one thing I can grow it is weeds. In fact, I just noticed some purslane coming up next to one of the raised beds. I used to eat it raw, thrown in with my salad greens back home. As for the Dandelions...George and I have eaten them here. When we have picked the older leaves, yes..they are very bitter, but a crop of new young ones in the spring are usually pretty good. I remember one year before I left the US, I actually found dandelion greens in a local grocery store. The poor little high school gal checking me out at the register hadn't a clue what they were. So when I told her she looked at me as if I had grown an extra head. I can't blame her though as I imagine her parents may have paid good money to have them eliminated from their yard.

I also wanted to tell Philip that I have so enjoyed the cat and dolphin video...It warms my heart every time I watch it. Thank you for posting it....The second video, of course is much more serious and sad. It is very upsetting when animals beach themselves. You know, Michele, the animal planet video you watched does make a bit of sense as it seems something is messing up the whales and dolphin sonar to the extent they cannot navigate properly. Often times, when taken back into the deeper water they wind up beaching themselves all over again. I am sure scientists studying the natural world have been exploring what this might be for some time now...so it makes sense that they may be closer to breaking the code of their sonar language. I too find it odd that the documentary you watched has become off limits. I do wish that the governments of the world would have some faith in our ability to deal with new and startling information about our world. For crying out loud (my dad's expression ) they treat us like children and we are not! If there is a mermaid swimming around in Lake Illawarra ,"by golly" I want to know about it!

Thanks again to everyone who has made this thread so interesting with all the fabulous information and videos that can stretch our brain power. I am really enjoying it as I am slowly trying to catch up with the rest of you wonderful "Einsteins."
Love,
Sandy

[11light11]

Flint, I think you eat the tuber-root of the katniss (the part that's buried), I don't know if you eat the leaves. I read about it in "Hunger Games" -- the main character is named Katniss after the plant. In their world they're all starving, but her father teaches her how to hunt, and forage for food. They find a small pond and he digs up the katniss and shows her her namesake . . he named her that because being able to eat katniss kept him and her mom from starving to death. The way she describes it, they taste kind of like a potato. I think they're in the potato family? The water potato. That's pretty cool if you have them growing by you!!! Let us know if you give them a try.

Petra, I think that the dandelion is a medicine, at least if my grandma's old wives tales are true!!! That's cool that people do that by you too. I liked your break down of teeth, lion. I hadn't thought of that before. It's like the Italian word "Al-dente" for when you cook the pasta so it's still a bit hard; it means "to the teeth." My mom always says "Medicans [translation: Americans ] like their pasta mushy! No!! Al-dente!" She's an Italian-snob.

Sandy I agree, if there are mermaids we have a right to know!!! It's like how they protect us about aliens. What do they think will happen, that we'll all come unglued??? After I watched it I couldn't get it out of my head for weeks. I kept thinking about mermaids and just feeling totally amazed by the possibility that they were real! But it's funny because we always act like we know everything that exists, already, you know what I mean?? I saw a nature show a few years ago where they used a little high-tech submarine to navigate to the bottom of the Mariana Trench, the deepest part of the ocean. The pressure down there is so intense, that it would collapse steel in on itself; they made the submarine out of some weird NASA-materials to make the journey possible. Well down at the ocean floor, even with the high pressure, they had these delicate little marine creatures . . it was like why don't they implode? And they showed these little animal-like things, that grow on the ocean floor . . they said they are animals, because they have these animal-like features . . .but they're plants, because they have these plant-like features . . but they can't be an animal because of this, and they can't be a plant, because of this (are you laughing?! ) so we have to come up with a new Kingdom in order to describe this thing . . . You know, this little guy was just waiting for them to classify him, so he could have the right to exist!

Love to you guys! Michele

[inlikeflint]

http://www.felcostore.com/pruners?gclid ... PAod3z0ABA
(Felco Pruner link... saves me from hot-linking the photo.)

I scored a pair of Felco #2. Pruners today for .50 cents. ($60.00 pruners)
"I rule!"

I'm still gloating.
These are like the Cadillac of garden pruners.

I had to share!
Peace & Love!

[Sandy]

Well done Flint! They couldn't have been secured by a nicer guy!
Love,
Sandy

[inlikeflint]

It's almost up to 70 degrees today...
So I planted my garlic and potatoes.
Poured some bottles of urine over the top of the soil (Nitrogen - 16/0/0)
Then placed leaves, pine needles and mulch over the top of that...

I have some horseradish roots I might put in another area that were left over from the horseradish I had planted a year ago... I don't know if they will grow or not.
Most of the roots went into a food processor with vinegar and water and was added to sour cream for horseradish sauce for x-mas... It was nice... I placed the plant tops into a glass of water and now most of the roots have grown back and new growth is starting to happen indoors... in a few months I'll go plant the tops back outdoors to see what happens.

[11light11]

Far out . . planting in the winter! I got a calendar for 2013 that lists the days each month that are good for planting, ridding the soil of bugs, and so on. I'll dig it up!

[Sandy]

Yum! I love horseradish sauce and eggs! Never planted horseradish before...is it very difficult? George just planted some peanut plants. Gosh they are pretty little things. They must have oily or waxy leaves because the water just beads on its surface, remaining long after all the other plant's leaves are dry.
I hope you have a milder summer this season. I think you guys have suffered enough with hot dry summers!
Love,
Sandy

[inlikeflint]

I have not tried growing peanuts yet...There is supposed to be a certain kind that you don't have to boil before you eat them... (I'll have to find the video on that!) I don't know much about them though.

Horseradish can grow practically anywhere.You bury the root section horizontally and then the rest of the plant will grow from it creating new roots and leaves. I have only found one kind of horseradish, but I am sure that it probably has varieties. My roots were dry and brittle so I tossed them... My plant tops in the glass of water are doing great. So I will plant those when it warms up. (The roots are getting big and starting to grow tiny roots in another direction... and one of the roots turned green and is starting to send up leaves.) It seems kind of ironic that you raid the plant for it's roots and you set the tops in a cup of water and the roots grow right back.

[11light11]

I feel inspired by your gardening acumen, Flint, but also a bit staggered thinking I don't know how to do all this! I'll try to take notes . . .

How're you doing Philip, still popping in? I'm wondering where your youtube page has guided you lately! You always get such great videos, right on time -- it's always a topic we're all already thinking about!

Hope your busy season is winding down . .

cheers, everyone!

[Philip Fong]

What happen when egoistic scientist are challenged and desperately trying to salvage their reputation? Here is a good example:


I don't have a religion is only because I am not convinced by the story but I believe we are created, most atheist is puzzled by this notion and there are no words to define this category and termed as agnostic but it only describe one don't know what to believe. I call myself a hybrid and I was from analogue to digital, the future kind that facilitate transition without loses, faith is preserved where science is never about debunking creation because it require testable hypothesis and the discovery of quantum entanglement since Einstein's era remain a mystery science fact that continue to baffle physicist.

What is laughable is when I found out about these things yet silly scientists declare there is no creator because it cannot be found therefore live created itself based on evolution alone, which is just a process, in simple term, bread is made of flour, yest under the right temperature and it made itself by chance, yet they claimed that religion is full of flaws and such explanation is perfect.

Other scientists make life better, they learn from mistakes and created solutions:


Printing kidneys and other organs:


Farmer, technologist:

[11light11]

I look forward to watching these videos, Philip. You have a knack for finding the best videos online! I see it's 12:12!

I know what you mean, when you talk about these terms 'atheist' and 'agnostic,' and then talk about the puzzle you are feeling as you sense there is something more. Maybe the trouble is the way we always put categories around things . . .and you are noticing how you are a free thinker, and you sense things that go unexplained. So there is no way to label yourself.

We had a required course in my social work program, called "Spirituality." The teacher said on the first day, "Spirituality is not the same as religion. A person can be religious and not spiritual. A person can be spiritual without a belief in God." The class did not so much discuss religion. He reminded us of our mandate as social workers, to assist the client in overcoming obstacles and finding the balance, physically, spiritually, emotionally, mentally, cognitively. He said "We don't just throw away the 'spiritual' part of the mandate if the person has no religion."

That's kind of what your discussion reminds me of. We are used to categories. Usually someone says "I am a Baptist," "I am Jewish," or "I am atheist" -- you have to define yourself, culturally. But it would be very hard to give a short description of how you feel towards your spirituality, right? And that makes it more interesting in my opinion. I am in the same boat you are. There are these forms we fill out; they ask "Define your religion." I always check "More spiritual than religious." It's interesting they offer that option. Do you have this option in your country as well?

Thanks for coming and visiting and sharing these videos! Love to you Philip -- and enjoy your new work! Love, Michele

[Welles]

Phillip,

Thank you for posting the Allan Savory and Marcin Jakubowski TED Talks in particular. I found both of those extremely valuable. They prove to me, once more that there are solutions.


Welles

[Philip Fong]

No problem Welles,
I myself have developed solutions in various field much like those people but obsoleted as time passes, I did the same in digital production and photo retouching (image extraction) much better than the filters today and that was 12 years ago:) the same methodology I used in analogue technique that simulated in digital. I can't tell people because it remain a secret unique to me:) Others can do it with filters.

Michele,
I remember when I apply for passport, the faith part must be an existing and recognized religion, no choice and I chose Buddhist:) Yes, we seems to share a lot of in common in terms of mentality, although time prompt no longer in my mind but I continue to progress in discovering connectivity. I won't tell everything as I mention before because at the back of my mind, someone / something is tracking our activity that will be used against us since the beginning. Just when I thought it is safe, I was sabotaged and I notice the same pattern / sign which I cannot avoid but prepare for the worst.

Today, I pass by a watch shop and bought a new cell battery for my old watch, lets see if time prompt will come back or not:) As I try to put back the parts, a very tiny spring bounce off but able to found it is like a miracle (3mm x.5mm)

[11light11]

Wow, that's pretty cool, what happened with that little tiny watch spring! ! ! This is a bit like what happened to you with your motorcycle, or the pie! (Wasn't there a story about a pie on the back of your bike?! Or am I making that up? . . .) Yes, do let us know if the new watch returns your prompts! Won't that be cool!

Prompts or not, having seen them once, you felt that connection to something bigger than yourself -- and it does grow, even without the prompts. I'm excited to hear more, when you feel safe. If it helps, I do believe there is more of a protective energy around us, than there is a negative or harmful energy. Our positive thoughts can combat the darkness anyway. Just like life: You enter the dark room, and you turn the light on . . . the darkness disappears. That's why the sun is so celebrated, no?

Love to you! Michele

[Sandy]

Hi all you wonderful thinkers...
I just had to pop on here and tell you all that out of the blue we found some Jerusalem artichokes at our local grocery store. They appear to have plenty of eyes for growing so we bought them and plan on planting them in the next couple of days. I mention this because we talked about it earlier on this page way back in January, I think... I am very excited at the prospect of planting something I have never tried before.
I hope all of you are well... I think of each of you often...
Love,
Sandy

[11light11]

Sandy that is very exciting!!! I've still never tried one. Let us know how it goes!!!

Love, Michele

[Sandy]

Will do!
Sandy