1.  My morning walk with the dogs

Purple Lupine perfume my air

Mr. Mockingbird is tuning up

North wind still blows cold!

Purple Lupine

2.  The “news”: I know a person who writes newspaper articles.  In this wide world of events that swirls around us it is fascinating to see which stories are selected to be reported as “news” by our news sources.  My friend faces daily pressure to select stories that he thinks his readers will respond to with interest.  His career depends on it. 

We live in a culture that expects disasters and conflicts (international. national, local, political, community, sports, personal) to be dished up for us to read  with out morning coffee and toast.  I’m not one of these “Pollyannaish” people that want only “ feel good” good news published... and it is worthwhile to ask what should be the function of news in our lives – filtered, as it is, through commercial profit making news sources, and individual writers anxious to make a name for themselves.  The pressure to write something acceptable every day must be fierce. 

What responsibilities come with discovering the truth?   How can you be sure something is "true"?

What is the function of news?  To entertain?... to make our lives more complete?  ...to educate?   ...to make us more effective in our daily lives?  I want stories that teach me something useful that I didn’t know, I want to learn about the key people that determine my world, sometimes a good news story can present me with a challenging question rather than an answer,  stories about life in other cultures that remind me that “my way” is not the “only way”.  

Respected editorial writers offer us their latest predictions  (especially political...) - but no one ever seems to check how often their predictions come true... but we keep reading them nonetheless...because they have made a “name for themselves”. My biggest concern is that too many of us are beginning to confuse opinion sites with factual information.  That is the challenge for our time!

A challenge for me and maybe for you too...

Historically, investigative journalists have a reputation for courageously searching out and speaking the truth...  These are the journalists that I most admire... whether they are acting to expose political corruption, social inequity, corporate greed, environmental issues... they often are telling a story that someone does not want to be told...someone who personally gains from a hurtful situation.  Investigative journalists sometimes risk their own well being to travel into dangerous situations so that the rest of us may know the truth.  Good investigative journalists double check their facts.  For them journalism is a calling.  Reporting on storm damage is easy compared with the research needed to expose the truth about a political malfunction. Sadly, as cuts in funding become more common,  major news sources are cutting their staff of journalists and depending more on commercial, profit making, generic wire services to find their stories.  

A free and open press is like another branch of our check and balance system

With expanded technology, we live in a time when our  news sources are becoming increasingly polarized. Its easier to seek out sites that support our positions rather than seeking to understand the positions of those with whom we disagree.  Print news sources are in decline as internet sources add more variety but also sadly more polarization. Every morning  I quickly scan several internet news sources for headlines of interest and then read 2-3 articles in depth. It is my challenge to remember to seek out opinions with with I do not agree...

Why is this so hard to do... (seek to understand those with whom I do not agree)

A fable 

2.   How do we label events as "good"  or "bad"  - Are "good and bad" fixed?

A farmer had only one horse. One day, his horse ran away.

All the neighbors came by saying, “I'm so sorry. This is such bad news. You must be so upset.” The man just said, “We'll see.”

A few days later, his horse came back with twenty wild horses. The man and his son corralled all 21 horses.

All the neighbors came by saying, “Congratulations! This is such good news. You must be so happy!” The man just said, “We'll see.”

Wild horses

One of the wild horses kicked the man's only son, breaking both his legs.

All the neighbors came by saying, “I'm so sorry. This is such bad news. You must be so upset.” The man just said, “We'll see.”

The country went to war, and every able-bodied young man was drafted to fight. The war was terrible and many young men were killed, but the farmer's son was spared, since his broken legs prevented him from being drafted.

All the neighbors came by saying, “Congratulations! This is such good news. You must be so happy!” The man just said, “We'll see.”

Is this approach to the news admirable? Is it lacking something important to you?

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If you find this blog of interest you can pass it on to a friend by sending this url:  http://johnzlatnik.blogspot.com/

Eating in a Traditional Tanzanian Restaurant with our Heifer Project group

Notes of the week:  Daffodils, Plum Blossoms, Mocking Bird songs... yes it is glorious spring in Northern California!
My surgery was 6 weeks ago today - Final check up next Tuesday - hoping for permission to drive!

Food, food,  wonderful food!

Photos this week show food  that we have encountered...

I grew up in a home in the country with unlimited farm raised eggs, cream, milk from our cow Bossy, butter, bacon, and frequent cuts of beef and whole chickens with all the tasty fat floating on top.  Over the years my wife and I  have been influenced in what we eat by the medical discoveries that show how diet can affect the quality and length of life as well as our susceptibility to disease. 

Chicken, vegetables, rice being served up for us in Southern Mexico 

What my wife and I now eat has also been influenced by the cultures that we encounter around us in Fremont.    We have evolved a style of eating that is eclectic and open to new food ideas.  We have come to relish culinary influences from Asian, Mexican, European, and Middle Eastern cuisines. We have come to feel comfortable using spices and herbs that are not frequently part of the traditional “American” diet that I grew up with.

Fried bananas - Tanzania

Here are five recipes that we eat with regularity...They are all tried and true and absolutely delicious!  All of them seem to get even tastier with over-night storage – So make enough for left overs.  Some of them are from vegetarian sources - but we frequently add chicken or beef to suit our fancy.

Roast Goat, vegetables and corn tortillas - Zapotec birthday paryty - Oaxaca  Mexico

A.     Butternut Squash with Chicken  - North Africa

This is an example of a North African “Tagine”, combining meat and dried fruit.  Be sure to keep the full mixture of spices! It is also possible to cut all proportions in half for a smaller batch.

9 cups peeled butternut squash cur in 1-inch cubes (this is one large Butternut Squash)

1-cup small-pitted prunes

3 cloves minced garlic

2 medium shallots, sliced separate into rings

1-teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1-teaspoon salt ½ and ½

½ teaspoon ground pepper

8 skinless, bone in chicken thighs

1 cup reduced sodium chicken broth

1 teaspoon freshly grated orange zest

¼ Cup orange juice

Tanzanian Lunch : Plantains, Taro, Yam, Avacado slices

1.  Preheat over to 350 degrees.  Place squash, prunes, garlic, shallots, cinnamon, oregano, thyme, 1/2-teaspoon salt and pepper in large bowl and mix well.

2.  Transfer to a 9 by 13 inch baking dish.  Sprinkle chicken with remaining ½ teaspoon salt and place on top of the vegetables.  Mix broth, orange zest and juice in a small bowl and pour over the chicken.  Cover the baking dish with foil.  Bake for 40 minutes, Uncover and continue to bake until vegetables are tender and the chicken is cooked through, basting often, about an hour more

Spanish breakfast, Crusty rolls, cheese, slices cold meat, fruit, good strong coffee

B.     Megadara  - Lebanon

This recipe is known in different forms throughout the Middle East,.  It is proported to be the famous “pottage” for which the Biblical Esah sold his birthright.

1 cup dry lentils

2-3 T olive oil

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

3 medium red onions, thinly sliced

Salt and pepper to taste

3/4 cup short grain brown rice

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (adjust )

1 inch cinnamon stick

2 tablespoons pine nuts, optional

Squeeze of fresh lemon juice

Greek yogurt, for topping

Bakery window in Spain

Cook lentils in medium saucepan.

Fill with enough cold water to cover the lentils by about an inch.

Bring it to a boil over medium-high heat, then turn down to a simmer and cook until the lentils are tender but not mushy, about 20 minutes.

Drain and set aside.

While the lentils cook, place large skillet on medium-high heat and add oil. When oil is hot, add cumin seeds for about 1 minute. ( Don”t burn )

Cook onions until they turn caramel brown ( avoid burning ) , stirring often. This will take about 15 minutes. Add a little water   to onions if they stick to the bottom of the pan.

Remove about half of the onions for garnish later.

Sprinkle in the ground cumin, cayenne and then add the cinnamon stick; saute about 1 minute.

Breakfast in Chiapas Mexico: Hot chocolate with Whipped cream, crusty bread, marmalade

Add the dry rice to the remaining half of the onions and cook, stirring often until some rice grains start to brown.

Add the cooked lentils, 3 cups of water and bring to a boil.

Add salt and pepper to taste at this time

Turn the heat down to low so that the pan is at a simmer, cover and cook 30 minutes. The water should be completely evaporated and rice should be tender.

If there's still  water in the bottom, put the lid back on and cook for another 5 minutes.

Turn off the heat, keep the lid on, and allow the rice to steam undisturbed for about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, toast the pine nuts, if using, in a small skillet over medium-low heat, shaking often, about 5 minutes.

Adjust the taste of the rice for seasoning. Serve with the reserved caramelized onions spread on top with the toasted pine nuts.

This dish is delicious served either hot or cold, and accompanied by yogurt.

John helping to stir a pot of banana beer... Tanzania

C.  Primavera Sauce - French/Italian

We work together to double or triple this recipe and then package it in 8 and 12 oz jars to store in the freezer – Can b used to flavor cooked vegetables, meat, pasta... or just about anything...One of our staples!

2-3 T olive oil

2 C chopped onion

1 medium sized bell pepper - diced

2 medium stalks celery, minced

1 lb. mushrooms, chopped

2 medium ( 6 inch ) zucchini, diced

Handful of fresh basil leaves, chopped (if available)

2 t dry Basil

1 t dry Oregano

1 t dry Thyme

1.5 t salt

1 can  ( l lb, 13 oz )  crushed tomatoes and juice( or substitute fresh tomatoes )

1    6 oz can tomato paste

1 T Honey

Black pepper to taste

6 cloves minced garlic

John helping to stir a pot of Atole - Oaxaca Mexico

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1.   Heat olive oil in kettle -

2.   Add onion, bell pepper, celery, mushrooms, zucchini, ripe tomatoes, fresh basil, dry herbs, salt

3.   Sauté over medium heat until onions are very soft ( 8-10 minutes)

4.   Add tomatoes, tomato paste, honey, black pepper.

5.   Use a spoon to break up the tomatoes into bite size pieces

6.   Bring to boil, then lower heat and simmer, partly covered, for 20-30 minutes

7.   Add garlic and cook about 10 minutes more

8.   The sauce can sit for several hours or can be refrigerated for up to a week.

9.   Heat gently before serving

… I double the recipe and freeze in separate packets for quick meals… good with chicken, vegetables,  legumes, almost anything!

Mountain village above Oaxaca -the community is celebrating work done in a water pipeline ( still to be completed ) 

D.  Vegetable Curry  - Optional:  3-4 chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces – East Indian

Our favorite East Indian curry!  Whatever you do... do not add curry powder! Include all of the spices listed here– Cayenne is the hot one – but 1/4 t is not excessive.  I get my spices in an Indian market but Safeway has them too.

2T veg. oil

1/2 t black mustard seed

3/4 t cinnamon

1.5 t cumin

1.5 t ground coriander seeds

.5 t ground fennel seeds

1 t turmeric

2 t grated fresh ginger

1/4 t cayenne (or to taste)

2 C Chopped onions

3 garlic cloves – crushed

2 med carrots- sliced

3 C cubed sweet potato or yams

1 medium head cauliflower – cut into flowerlets

3/4 C water

2 med tomatoes – chopped

2 C green peas or 2 medium green peppers – chopped

Deli window in NW Spain - cheese, yogurt, octopus, sausage, bacon

Heat oil in deep fly pan

Add mustard seed and heat on med heat until they begin to pop

Add other spices and cook on low heat for 2 minutes to enhance flavors of spices

Don’t burn them!

Add chopped onions and sauté until translucent

Add carrots and cook several minutes

Add sweet potato and cook few minutes more

Add cauliflower and stir well to coat all the vegetables with spice mix.

Add water, cover pan, simmer for 20 min., and stir occasionally.

When sweet potatoes are tender, but not fully cooked, add tomato and peas (or gr. Pepper)

Simmer covered for 10-15 min. more

Vegetables should retain bright color

Sweet potato will soften and become part of the saucea

Serve with short grain brown rice for best flavor

Garnish with yogurt, chopped cashews, raisins, or mango chutney

Grinding soaked corn kernals to make 'masa' to be used in making tortillas

E.  Tunisian stew

One of our all time favorite company dishes - memorable blend of flavors.

2 onions - cut into thin slices - slow cooked until golden brown

Peel and cube 2 large potatoes (1/2 inch cubes)

Peel and cut two carrots into 1/4 inch discs – add to mix

Add:

·      2 Cloves garlic – crushed

·      2 sausages - (chicken sausages ) - slice thin and add

·      2 Bay leaves

·      1 can garbanzo beans – drained and washed

      (or precook 1 cup of dry beans -  White Italian beans are good )

·      1 can - crushed Tomatoes

·      1 t Turmeric

·      1 t  medium hot Paprika

·      1/2 t  Cardamom

·      1/2 t  Coriander

·      1/4 t Cinnamon

·      Black pepper to taste

S. Mexico Village - making soup over a 3 stone fireplace

Cook gently until potatoes and carrots are somewhat soft

Best made a few hours before serving - to allow flavors to blend

Can be served with middle eastern bread or rice & sala

Picnic in Tanzania- We had walked all morning to reach this location!

Week of high drama in Washington

I hear everybody talking about "sequester" – but most  people don't quite get it.  .So I did a little digging and this is what I have found:
(Thanks to the Washington Post Newspaper and Andrew Taylor, Associated Press; for background information:)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2012/09/14/the-sequester-explained/

Sequester

The “sequester” is  a package of automatic spending cut developed  in the fall of 2011. $1.2 trillion in  cuts are scheduled to begin in 2013 and end in 2021, divided over the nine-year period. Cuts are split between defense spending  and domestic spending.  Funding for current wars, Social security and Medicaid will stay about the same. $109 billion would be cut in 2013.

Where do the cuts come from?

The sequester was triggered when our federal legislators  failed to pass a 1.2$ deficit reduction package in November 2011.

With sequestration, legislators don’t have any discretion with the across-the-board cuts: The cuts are intended to hit all affected programs equally.  The legislators don’t have much control over how cuts are made. The plan is designed to pressure legislators into making a budget deal to avoid the cuts.

Anticipated effect of sequestration on national economy

Some defense officials warn that the cuts will lead to unbalanced reductions. Democratic legislators have warned about the impact on social programs. And defense, health care and other industries that are significantly dependent on federal spending say that major job losses will happen if the cuts end up taking effect.

The government was approaching its debt limit, which needed to be raised through a congressional vote or else the country would default in early August 2011. While Democrats were in favor of a vote without strings attached, Republicans were demanding substantial cuts in exchange for raising the debt limit.

Why have the Republicans suddenly decided that the debt limit should not be raised?  To view the situation in perspective - this graph shows how past presidents dealt with raising the debt limit:

Past presidents and raise in debt ceiling 

President Obama and Congressional leaders finally agreed to allow the debt ceiling to be raised  $2.1 trillion in exchange for the establishment of a committee to oversee the period of budget adjustment.
The deal also includes mandatory spending reductions.

 Party leaders, the White House and most members of Congress supported the debt-ceiling deal, passing the bill in the House by  268-161 vote, with about one-third of House Republicans and half of House Democrats opposing it. It passed in the Senate, 74-26, with six Democratic senators and 19 Republican senators opposing it.

So this is where we are now:  Republicans don’t want to raise taxes to generate revenue, while Democrats are reluctant to make dramatic changes to entitlement programs to achieve savings.

What cuts will actually occur:

2013 Sequester Breakdown

 Here are just a few. Update: Note that these are rough estimates based on numbers put out by OMB before the fiscal cliff deal:  Note that many of these affect jobs and economic growth.

• Aircraft purchases by the Air Force and Navy are cut by $3.5 billion.
• Military operations across the services are cut by about $13.5 billion.
• Military research is cut by $6.3 billion.
• The National Institutes of Health get cut by $1.6 billion.
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are cut by about $323 million.
• Border security is cut by about $581 million.
• Immigration enforcement is cut by about $323 million.
• Airport security is cut by about $323 million.
• Head Start gets cut by $406 million, kicking 70,000 kids out of the program.
• FEMA’s disaster relief budget is cut by $375 million.
• Public housing support is cut by about $1.94 billion.
• The FDA is cut by $206 million.
• NASA gets cut by $970 million.
• Special education is cut by $840 million.
• The Energy Department’s program for securing our nukes is cut by $650 million.
• The National Science Foundation gets cut by about $388 million.
• The FBI gets cut by $480 million.
• The federal prison system gets cut by $355 million.
• State Department diplomatic functions are cut by $650 million.
• Global health programs are cut by $433 million; the Millennium Challenge Corp. sees a $46 million cut, and USAID a cut of about $291 million.
• The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is cut by $55 million.
• The SEC is cut by $75.6 million.
• The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is cut by $2.6 million.
• The Library of Congress is cut by $31 million.
• The Patent and Trademark office is cut by $156 million.

Does the sequester have to go into effect?  Neither party wants it to go into effect due to the damage it will do to the economy - All that is required to remove it is a simple action of Congress to delete the sequestion bill and it will all go away.  It is legal - quick - and possible.