Free Range Scam

I read this on Salon.com today.

Which leads us to the genre you call "supermarket pastoral." What is it exactly?

"Walking through Whole Foods, I joke in the book, is a literary experience. You need to be a pretty good literary critic, in other words, to figure out what's really being said on these labels. They're written in what I call supermarket pastoral, which is a very persuasive form. I read a lot of labels and I'm still a sucker for it. Free-range chicken, for instance, can mean nothing more than a 20,000-bird shed with a tiny little lawn and a little door that's opened two weeks before the hens are slaughtered. These little yards are purely symbolic. Chickens don't use them because they're too careful. They've never been outside before; there's not enough room for all of them and they're a flock animal. So it's a conceit to appeal to the consumer. When you see "free-range," it's not happening, but if you see "pastured" chicken, which you sometimes will at a farmers market, that's real. And pastured eggs, by the way, are a superior product in every way. I know a farmer in California who grows them. They're $6 a dozen and I consider them worth it."

Michael Pollan

Well count me in as totally bummed. I purchase free-range eggs because I thought these eggs were laid by hens that were running about free; you know, eating butterflies, worms and such.

It's always bugged me that most the free range egg cartons are labeled 'vegetarian diet'. How can a chicken run free and not eat bugs? I want the chickens I eat and that lay the eggs I eat on Sunday morning to know the joy of swallowing a a grasshopper. But no... the poor things are caged, i.e, imprisoned. I was fed a crap story what chickens do in their free time. I am so annoyed.

April Docent Meeting

On Wednesday night I attended the Docent's meeting at the State Indian Museum. I love that the 'new' Ranger Henry is tireless in his pursuit of cool things for us to do at the museum. Sacto has an fun artsy event called 'Second Saturday' on which the 2nd Saturday of each month the mid-town area stores & shops have open house with loads of fun, music, free eats and what-have-you. Henry wants to give our museum to give a shot to hosting Indian art on 2nd Saturdays! I am all for it. There are many considerations, such as liability for the hosted artworks and such, so I will wait with avid anticipation while Henry runs the idea past the State Park big cheeses. *fingers crossed*

One reason, aside from the obvious fun, I am excited about hosting the Second Saturday event is the opportunity to put in more hours at the museum. I tend not to go there unless there is some event such as Acorn Day or Honored Elders Day. I’ve been a docent since 1999 during which time I put in two years on the Historic Sites Board but I still haven’t managed to rack up my 200 hours pin! I prefer to assume the accountant has screwed up in tallying my hours – surely I’ve averaged at least 2.3 hours per month over the past five years? *grumbles in sullen manner*

Prior to the meeting I had a quiet dinner at a Japanese Restaurant I haven't been to in ages - it is near the former State training center. I had walnut shrimp with the Dashwood Sisters - that is, I read Sense & Sensibility over dinner. It is amazing that I've watched a b'jillion productions of the Jane Austin classic in movies and such, but until now, hadn't got round to reading it. Mommy Nancy thought we'd have fun reading it together & then having our own book club to dice up the juicier bits of S&S. Ok, 'juicy bits' aren't quite the words I'm looking for. I must say that the Dashwood siblings offer reading of great interest & fun.

My new replacement Canon camera has arrived! I have not even opened the box – fearing a break-in and assuming that like the last thieves the unopened box would be easily overlooked in a back room closet. Isn’t that pathetic? I will free the camera from its confines over the weekend and put it to work. I miss having photos to go along with my posts here.

Year of the Rabbit Woman

Talk about your interesting coincidence. I went in to work this morning, first day back since getting my iPod and I had an email from our computer folk. They diplomatically pointed out that I had MP3 & wav files... ON THE WORK SERVER! Feel free to scream in horror here. Mind, it is no dread secret that I have music on the work computer - loads of people do. The music soothes... keeps some of us out of Napa State Hospital.

I had no idea that the stuff I put on my c:/ drive was getting sucked into the mother ship by that which is the office data back-up system. I was told I need to get all of my music files off the system before the music industry finds out that I have an unauthorized copy of Oklahoma on the computer and they come a knocking.

Now ordinarily removing my music off the computer would have been dead-dreadful news - but not dreadful today. I quickly downloaded every last note of the music on my office computer onto the iPod. Ta da! Problem solved. Now I can play the music from the iPod. I can even play the iPod music through my office computer's iTunes program and thereby use the computer's big & comfy ear phones. Hum... bet the next thing they do is demand the free iTunes programs get removed from the computers next.

Anyway, I thought it was spiffy that I should happen to have bought the iPod just in a nick of time so to speak.

Spontaneous Translation: Even less reason now to feel guilty about getting the iPod.