What is Steff-stainability?

Living sustainably, my way. It's thinking about what you are putting into your body and how it affects you. But it's also indulging in a brownie cheesecake every now and then. It's making your body look the way you want it to and being proud of it. But it's not spending half of the day working out. It's about making small changes in your life to benefit the great earth on which we live. But it's also running your A/C in the summer and driving your car. It's about setting goals and living up to them. It's trying to make the world a better place. And as I am ever-learning and ever-changing, so is this definition.

Saturday, June 19, 2010

Hungover Trip to the Farmers Market

Let me just start out by saying I'm hungover as hell today! A few friends decided we would celebrate the weekend, and a few margaritas, daiquiris, and vodka sodas later, we decided that we would get up early and go to the farmers market.

I LOVE farmers market. In our college town, San Luis Obispo, the city would shut down the main street downtown every Thursday and have a farmer's market. Half of the street had farmers selling fresh produce, and the rest had BBQ stands, bounce houses, cookie stands, and even political displays. I definitely took it for granted, growing up in California and having all the fresh produce I could ever need, year round. Then we moved to Virginia and I learned what it was like to have produce that was trucked all the way across the country. Everything was more expensive, it spoiled quicker, and it didn't taste as good.

Now, living in Oklahoma, we have a little more choice. Kara found out about the farmer's market a few weeks ago; it only happens in the summer here and they definitely don't shut down the main road to put up a bounce house. But the produce is SO good and the people are friendly. We went last Saturday and Wednesday, and again this morning. It was enough to forget that I was woozy and had sworn off drinking for the rest of my life.

Farmers markets are great for a few reasons. First, you haven't lived until you've bitten into a fresh tomato or zucchini. You can taste the difference from the stuff you buy from the store. I don't know if the all the produce at the farmer's market is organic, but as my friends who graduated with degrees in agriculture will tell you, organic isn't always better. But fresh IS always better. A lot of stuff at the grocery store is trucked from all over the place, but you know exactly where the food at the farmers market comes from. Most of the time, you are giving your money directly to the person who grew it. How cool is that?!

Farmers markets are also great because it's good for the environment. According to cuesa.com, the average meal travels about 1500 miles from farm to plate. To give you a little perspective, that is from the coast of California all the way to Oklahoma City. I've driven that route. It's a LONG way! Imagine how much money is spent on gas, and how much pollution is sent into the air, just to transport our food. I'd be interested to look into which areas "import" (for lack of a better term) the most food, such as big cities. Be on the lookout for that on here. Anyway, when you buy from a farmers market, the food has travelled a significantly smaller distance, having a smaller impact on the environment.

Buying from the farmers market is also CHEAPER! On an average trip to the commissary (grocery store on base), I spend about $115. This past week, I spent $80. On Saturday and Wednesday combined, I spent about $15 on produce, and that was enough produce for the whole week. That's a total of $95 altogether, saving me $20! I bought quite a bit of produce this morning, and I ended up spending $17.25.

Finally, you get to support people in your community. Everyone in politics is always talking about the people on "Main Street"; these are the small, local business owners that have to compete with the big, powerful corporations. So when you go to the farmers market, you are helping enrich your community and support your own local Main Street.

So food from the farmers market is better, cheaper, good for the environment, and good for the community! Why wouldn't you go? I strongly urge each of you to find out if there is a farmers market in your community and go check it out. You may be surprised; I'm pretty sure they even have farmers markets in New York City. It's so fun to go and buy all this yummy food! If you don't have a farmers market near you, you can grow your own food, but that is for another post.

Here is my loot for today!
A dozen eggs, a GIANT zucchini, yellow squash, cucumber, 2 green peppers, 2 shallots (which I'll be using in my Jamaican Jerk Chicken with Mango Salsa, look for the recipe!), 2 tomatoes, a pound of peaches, and a bag of fresh basil. I can't wait to eat all this!

And can I just say I have the most amazing husband ever? While I was typing all this, he made me his famous french toast and cleaned the kitchen. What a guy! I won't be around for the rest of the weekend; Ryan, the dogs, and I are going down to Dallas to go see Wicked! I'm so excited! Enjoy your weekend!

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