Compost Is Cooking

Checked the temperature of the compost that I posted about two days ago—this afternoon it's holding at 142 degrees:



Two days ago it was "room temperature"—around 75 degrees in the shade. But simply turning it (to add oxygen), and adding water and alfalfa meal as food for the microbes, got the critters going again and nearly doubled the temperature. 

The Necessity of Marriage

Last night I attended  the Veritas Lecture Series at Southern Evangelical Seminary in Weddington, NC (suburb of Charlotte). The guest speakers were Dr. Robert George, professor at Princeton University, and Maggie Gallagher, co-founder and president of the Institute for Marriage and Public Policy (IMPP). The title for the evening's presentation was "Marriage: Why It Can and Must Be Saved."

It was an amazing opportunity to hear two of the most important leaders in America in the fight to preserve the institution of marriage in its traditional (one man, one woman) form. Dr. George was the primary writer of The Manhattan Declaration (see next post, below) and they were both instrumental, especially Gallagher, in the passage in November 2008 of "Proposition 8" (California Marriage Protection Act) that amended the California state Constitution to read, "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California." They were told that the Proposition had absolutely no chance of passage, but through their efforts—and the efforts of many other grass-roots groups—it succeeded.

It's amazing to listen to people who have such experience, knowledge, and intellectual horsepower, combined with grace and faith. Dr. George's c.v. is exhausting just to read—graduate of both Harvard (law and divinity schools) and Oxford (philosophy of law) Universities, admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court and lower courts, author/editor of more than a dozen books—all focused on the defense of personal liberties and moral foundations consistent with a biblical worldview. Gallagher (Yale grad) has authored five books on marriage and has the dogged, not to be deterred nature of a dog with a bone. I would not want to be on opposite sides of either in an intellectual fight. The two work together through IMPP (and in other venues) in addition to many other individual pursuits.

They were introduced by Dr. Alex McFarland, president of Southern Seminary:



Dr. Barry Leventhal, Dean and professor at the Seminary, gave the invocation. He and I chatted later about the impact he had on my life back around 1971. I was a pretty young Christian, in graduate school at the University of Alabama, and growing in my faith through Campus Crusade for Christ. CCC sponsored an evangelistic evening in one of the campus fraternity houses (SAE, I believe—my own fraternity at Birmingham-Southern College), and Barry was the main speaker. He had been a standout on the UCLA national champion football team and was a Jewish convert to Christ. He gave a hilarious talk—perfect for an audience of skeptical frat guys and sorority girls—and while I was already a believer, I remember being greatly encouraged by his talk. He was appreciative of the memory, and also graciously insisted we get together soon to see if I can't finish up my own lapsed doctoral studies through Southern Seminary. I basically just lacked the dissertation when I had to drop out of a Doctor of Ministry program at Fuller Seminary in 1985. Don't know if it will work out to conclude those studies at Southern, but he was gracious to invite consideration. He and I both graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary (where he also earned a doctorate), so share that cultural connection.

I snapped this picture of Dr. Levnenthal while he was praying, thus his closed eyes:



The speakers spoke conversationally in an interview fashion with Dr. McFarland, rather than lecturing:



Dr. Robert George:





Maggie Gallagher:





During the Q and A session following the talks, a young man identified himself as the editor of a local gay/lesbian newsletter and asked an accusatory, but polite, question about the speakers' positions. I thought, "Yo boy" wondering if he knew what he was getting into. I snapped Maggie Gallagher's posture as the young man spoke . . .



They weren't in the least put off by the question/accusation. She and Dr. George were completely gracious and complimentary to the young man for his honesty in identifying himself (in a decidedly partisan crowd) and did the best they could to address his concerns. They have spent so much of their lives in hostile settings that they have apparently learned how to handle objections and accusations with graceful aplomb—speaking the truth with love. Indeed, Dr. George's last exhortation of the evening to the mostly-Christian audience was the necessity for maintaining an attitude of love and grace when dealing with those who disagree. Very impressive stuff. 

Even more impressive was a long answer he gave to another question about the use of biblical doctrine as a defense of his positions when dealing with people who don't recognize the authority of Scripture. He explained that it's not enough to quote the Bible. You have to understand why God revealed the positions that Scripture takes. That is, why did God say that a man and a woman should become one flesh (Gen. 2:24)—"one flesh" being a literal, not metaphorical, reference to the sexual dimension of marriage (available, by natural law, to only a man and a woman). It might be possible for marriage to have emotional union, as same-sex couples do without the ability to copulate naturally, but only one man-one woman unions have the ability to satisfy every dimension of creative union: spiritual, emotional, and physical. He pointed out that philosophers like (Greek) Plato and (Roman) Musonios recognized this without the benefit of biblical revelation and came to the same conclusion as the Bible based purely on philosophy and reason, not revelation. I haven't done his words justice, but after he apologized for the long discourse in answer to the question, the audience spontaneously applauded—as much for, I think, the scope of George's answer as for the answer itself. 

So—a stimulating evening in many regards. It's rare to get this close to folks of the stature of Gallagher and George, yet it was also a reminder that they are "just folks." All of us can be involved at our own levels and with our own gifts to stem the erosion of the foundational values on which coherent and cohesive societies depend.

Thanks again to Daniel for the heads-up on a meeting I otherwise would have missed. (Turns out one of Daniel's professors from the University of South Carolina had recently lectured on natural law at Southern Seminary. This professor, Dr. Christopher Tollefson, and Dr. George coauthored Embryo: A Defense of Human Life [2008]). 

The Manhattan Declaration Revisited

I posted back in January about the Manhattan Declaration, a multi-denominational statement of biblical values about marriage, the sanctity of life, and core moral foundations. I encouraged readers to join the hundreds of thousands of concerned citizens who have already signed it—and to encourage others to do so. It is gaining traction—the Kentucky state legislature recently adopted the Manhattan Declaration by voice vote as a show of support. 

One of the three co-authors of the Declaration, Dr. Robert George (Harvard Law School, Harvard Divinity School, Oxford University D.Phil in philosophy of law), is speaking in Charlotte tonight, a meeting I hope to attend. (Thanks to son Daniel for the heads-up.)

Please consider signing the Declaration if you haven't already done so.

Good for Neal McDonough!

Hollywood actor Neal McDonough (Band of Brothers, Desperate Housewives) has been sacked from his current (reportedly million dollar) TV gig because of his refusal to do sex scenes. Reason? He's a "family man and a Catholic" and has made his position clear to casting agents. While I know nothing about Mr. McDonough, if what I've read is true then I say hats off to the man for having principles and sticking to them in the face of financial loss. (Read more.)

Lord Have Mercy

My Southern mother, rest her soul, would exclaim, sometimes whisper, "Lord have mercy" (all one phrase; no comma). I couldn't have predicted when I would hear it, but was never surprised when I did. It was an expression of amazement, of startled realization or awareness, that seemed to have little to do with the Lord or with mercy. Yet, to my Southern sensibility, it was the right thing to say when she said it. She meant no disrespect; no violation of the third commandment. Indeed, there was a note of reverence in her voice. To this day, I don't fully understand the tradition from whence the expression arose.

But arise it did, always on time. And it settled in my young acculturated conscience so that I find myself thinking it sometimes as an adult. I know the Lord, and I understand mercy, and the moments when "Lord have mercy" appears in my thoughts have, just like when Mama said it, nothing to do with either. Yet it appears, unbidden, at just the right occasional moment. Like tonight when I watched the videos of one Crystal Bowersox, the heir apparent to the next American Idol crown. I found myself shaking my head and thinking, "Lord have mercy." 

I have been a sometimes half-, sometimes whole-, hearted American Idol watcher in the past when the competition got down to the final dozen. This year, I haven't paid much attention given how underwhelmed I was with what I saw of the contestants. It's as if Idol has finally exhausted America's supply of young talent. (I say that with all due respect to those who are giving their all—far more than I could give.) I have a church commitment on Tuesday nights so have missed most of the live performances, but caught glimpses of Crystal Bowersox a couple of times—and my interest was piqued.

So I went to the Idol web site tonight and watched the replay of all her performances. And there it came: "Lord have mercy." I just shake my head at the raw talent of someone so young, from what I understand is a fairly challenging background. When she takes the stage with her guitar, she exudes a level of confidence and calm control that sets her apart from the other contestants. Listening to her version of "Me and Bobby McGhee" with eyes closed, one might wonder if Janis Joplin was back from the dead. "You Can't Always Get What You Want" and "Give Me One Reason" were also amazing. Her vocalization and phrasing are a gift; her touch on the guitar so deft. 

She's not without weaknesses; when she tried singing without her guitar this past Tuesday night she wasn't quite sure what to do with her hands. But that's okay. She may become an artist like k.d. lange who does some of her best work with guitar in hand. I don't know if she'll win this year or not. But even if she doesn't, I can't believe she won't be snapped up by a label. Her kind of talent won't go unnoticed. Simon Cowell has as much as said that the competition is hers to lose. (One thing I do miss about this year's Idol is Paula—for one specific reason (and only this reason): Paula was the only judge who could not stay in her chair when a performer and his or her song called forth an energetic response. A former Laker's girl and choreographer, Paula's shameless solo dancing at the judges' table added energy to the scene and encouragement to the singer. And I feel sure she would have been on her feet for several of Crystal Bowersox's songs.)

If you want to play through the videos, go to this page. Wait patiently and the videos will cycle through the window one after another. It's a few minutes of slow headshaking, and for me, a few tears and a "Lord have mercy." 

Waking Up the Compost

The movie Clear and Present Danger opens with a Coast Guard cutter overtaking a suspicious boat somewhere off the U.S. coast. When the suspicious vessel fails to acknowledge the Coast Guard's presence by slowing down, the cutter's captain gives a cold command to the sailor at the helm: "Wake 'em up!" An ear-shattering blast of the cutter's horn fails to slow the vessel, and the sailors man the bow gun and prepare to board.

Sometimes compost—actually, bio-organisms in the compost—needs to be waked up as well. The compost pile I fed with scraps over the winter had lain dormant during the cold months when the microbial life slowed down to a crawl. But with the warmer weather it's time to wake the critters—get 'em fed, wet, and aired out so they can pick up where they left off last fall and turn my food and yard scraps into humus.

This is a lame compost bin—not really enough mass to get really hot. But it has to suffice for the time being. I forked the scraps from a previous bin into this new bin, which provides oxygen and remixes the scraps. After every new layer (6"-8" of scraps) I added alfalfa meal as a nitrogen source for the microbes and dampened the scraps with the hose. Air, food, water—what every biological being needs, microbes being no exception.

Re-Cycling

My neighbor, John, pulled a rusted hulk out of a dumpster a few years ago and held on to it, waiting for a chance to re-cycle it. When the young son of another neighbor was ready for his own two-wheeler, John did his thing: disassembly, major cleaning, unlocking rust-frozen nuts and chain, repainting body and wheels, new fork bearings, seat, tires, and grips, several days' labor—and a name plate for young David. A great example of keeping something out of a landfill and restoring it to usefulness. All it took was a little resourcefulness and care.

Nice work, John. (And thanks to John for the clever "re-cycle" title. Get it?)

Many People Still Don't Know This

On July 17, 2009, the American Dietetic Association released their position paper on vegetarian/vegan diets:

It is the position of the American Dietetic Association that appropriately planned vegetarian diets, including total vegetarian or vegan diets, are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. Well-planned vegetarian diets are appropriate for individuals during all stages of the lifecycle, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, and adolescence, and for athletes.

It's amazing how many people still don't understand that there is nothing in animal-based foods that is needed by human beings for good health that cannot be found in plant foods. Dietician Jeff Novick explains, however, that the key phrases in the ADA statement are "appropriately planned" and "well-planned"—meaning a diet of whole foods: vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts, seeds, and grains. It is entirely possible to put together a diet of vegan junk food as with conventional junk food, but that is obviously not what the ADA says is acceptable.

To explain the difference, I have used the terms "defensive veganism" and "offensive veganism." Defensive veganism focuses on what one is NOT going to eat (animal products) while offensive veganism focuses on what one IS going to eat (a wide variety of whole, plant-based foods). As in sports, both defense and offense are important, but too many people focus just on the former. Many people who become vegan from an animal rights perspective are focused on NOT eating animals (a defensive posture); they try to live on vegan fake food (soy products) and find their health compromised. They eliminate meat (defensive) without incorporating (offensive) whole plant foods. 

The ADA paper concludes:

"Appropriately planned vegetarian diets have been shown to be healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may be beneficial in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. Vegetarian diets are appropriate for all stages of the life cycle. There are many reasons for the rising interest in vegetarian diets. The number of vegetarians in the United States is expected to increase during the next decade. Food and nutrition professionals can assist vegetarian clients by providing current, accurate information about vegetarian nutrition, foods, and resources."

More Bad News for Agave Nectar

On the heels of Dr. Mercola's negative article yesterday (see my post below), more bad news today about agave nectar from an even better source: vegan dietician Jeff Novick who has become one of the go-to guys in the plant-based world for nutritional advice. He makes the interesting point that some of the same "natural food" stores that outlaw HFCS products (high fructose corn syrup)—like the Earthfare chain of stores in the southeast—sell agave nectar as a recommended sweetener even though agave has a higher fructose content than HFCS! There is also misleading information regarding agave's (low—lower is better) glycemic index scores that Novick addresses. 

Read the article here. Bottom line: agave isn't all it's been cracked up to be. 

Addendum, same day: I was at Costco this afternoon and stopped by the booth where a guy was demonstrating and selling the BlendTec blender, making and giving away fruit smoothies. He was also selling QUARTS of agave nectar! Why would anyone need to further sweeten a fruit smoothie with agave—or anything else? (Full Disclosure: in September, 2008, I posted on this blog my recipe for the fruit smoothie I make almost daily. At that time, I included in the ingredients one Tbsp of agave nectar. It was not long after that that I began reading about agave and stopped using it in my smoothies. It just wasn't necessary given all the natural sugar in the fruit. I have since deleted it from the recipe I posted. Live and learn! I need to update that recipe and repost it since I have tweaked it a good bit since Sept 2008. It was good then, but is even better now—with the addition of kale, spinach, and some other goodies.)

The Solitary Life of the Master Craftsman

I recently learned about a luthier in Bedford, Virginia, James Jones, who has been making mountain music instruments for several decades (hammered dulcimers, bowed psaltries, zithers, Appalachian dulcimers, harps, slit drums, thumb pianos, and Celtic bouzoukis). The instruments are beautiful and compelling, not only in their sound but in the mountain traditions they preserve for future generations.

You can view his instruments and other items (he makes kitchen cutting boards out of scrap wood) at his web site. But I really want to recommend this Flickr slide show of the making of a Celtic bouzouki (sort of a mandolin on steroids). As the 150 images pass by, one is struck by the solitary, silent life of a master craftsman—a person who finds contentment in designing and constructing objects of utility and beauty for others to enjoy. The slide show takes just a few minutes to view and is well worth the time. 

Agave: You May Be Better Off Drinking the Tequila

Agave nectar has become the fashionable sugar-substitute of choice in the last couple of years. I even noticed a two-pack of large bottles of organic agave nectar at Costco yesterday. The blue agave plant grows native in Mexico and, once fermented, forms the basis of tequila.

Dr. Mercola has published a scathing critique of agave nectar, saying it is higher in fructose than the much-bedeviled HFCS (high fructose corn syrup)—fructose being the bad-for-you form of "sugar" (glucose being the natural, good form). Along with the fructose count, agave nectar is highly chemical-processed and devoid of nutrients—you can read the rest of the story here.

If Dr. Mercola is right, caveat emptor—let the buyer beware. Clever marketing can make natural things look good even after all the "nature" has been removed. (It goes without saying that I'm not a scientist or nutritionist, so can't evaluate Mercola's claims. I pass along the link for your own consideration.)