Hey friends. Go vegan. thanks.

::to start::

I want to write a note here about living a compassionate lifestyle. I've been a vegan for almost a year now, and I think it's about time I posted about it more than in passing. I am a vegan for a few reasons. These include everything from my health and spirituality, to the environment, to my compassion for animals and humans alike, to the plain fact that it's a cost effective and delicious way to live. I DO NOT NEED animal products in my life at ALL. Neither do you. Therefore I see no reason to continue to cause suffering to animals (and humans, and the earth) if I dont need to.

::for christians::

My veganism and my christianity tie together. A lot of my christian friends think that my ethical choices concerning animals are separate from my choice to follow Christ. I disagree.

Death is a thing of the Fall. It was introduced as a penalty for sin. After Adam and Eve sinned animals had to die. They (Adam and Eve) were the cause of the introduction of death to animals.
Christ conquered death. Christians agree on this point. Death no longer binds people. Therefore I choose to not cause the death of any more beings on earth... as an act of redemption. I think that to no longer cause the death of animals is a step away from the Fall, and a step toward what God envisions heaven to be like. There will be no meat in heaven because there will be no more death. It's that simple.

If Christians are to be viewed as compassionate, I honestly think we need to consider a death-free diet. We have dominion over animals certainly, but I choose to use that power in a postive way. Stewardship over animals is a gift, an entrusting of God's creation into our hands. I honestly think that if we need not hurt animals, we should not.

I do not see how this gives honour to God.

:: to finish::

To say that you love eating meat is a cop-out. To say that you love cheese too much is a cop-out. To say that you live in your parents house or in rez, or have a carnivorous partner is a cop-out. I dont want to be harsh, I want to be realistic. I'm tired of hearing cop-outs.

Drop me a line here if you have questions. Here are some sites I've found helpful.

Why?
Vegan Outreach
PETA
Christian Vegetarians

How?
Physicians Commitee for Responsible Medicine
Starter kit

Recipes?
The Post Punk Kitchen
Vegan Lunchbox
Veg cooking
The Vegan Cooking School


Please consider this guys. I think we need to make responsible choices on a hungry planet. I think we need to look after the environment. I also think we need to look after God's creatures.
Cheers.

oh monday. monday morning.



Hey friends. It's nine-thirty and I'm just bombing around the office. Mostly I'm waiting for Kerri. I dont actually have to be here, so if I feel ambitious I'll go for a walk. If I dont, I'll go back to bed.
A coffee may sway me in the more productive direction.

Yesterday I preached at the Peterborough Free Methodist church. They're a good bunch, and it was good to go back and hang out with them. My sermon was called "the gift and the exchange" and I talked about spiritual and physical poverty, as well as equality. I really like preaching, it's a lot of fun. There was a pretty great response, some people were crying, but I was too, so that was okay. I feel really passionate about what I speak on. Kleenex is a prerequisite.

After hanging out with the church, I went to the one and only Peterborough Folk Festival (it comes but once a year) It's my first FolkFest. I went a little crazy and bought a brown tie-die sundress. Srsly.

Then Dahn, Little Dan, Shannon and I went on an adventure! We explored the river. I went for a bit of a swim. My docks were (are) waterlogged. We found a picnic table standing in the middle of the water, so we sat on it and had a cigarette. Because what else are you going to do on a table in the middle of a river?

Now--here is my secret:

I tell it to you with the openness of heart that I doubt I shall ever achieve again, so I pray that you are in a quiet room as you hear these words. My secret is that I need God--that I am sick and can no longer make it alone. I need God to help me give, because I no longer seem to be capable of giving; to help me be kind, as I no longer seem capable of kindness; to help me love, as I seem beyond being able to love.

- Douglas Coupland, in Life After God.

Look what I can do!

I made a personal best last night. Look at this puppy. There's a lot of room for improvement, but this is the real deal.
I peer-pressured Des into letting me make her a latte and boom! there it was. And because it's Des, she knew it was good! And she had a CAMERA. Therefore, photos are courtesy of the one and only Desiroar.

a bees nervous system.

the radio and the blog.

listen to trentradio 92.7 fm. now.
Also listen at 11. for the final installment of Francofolie... I will be talking in french, about French fires and French kissing...

Then listen at midnight. For a giant punch of yes.
(er...The New Noise, with Dahn Mirabelli)

another drink and the evasive rosetta.

Well, this week is all about the ever evasive rosetta latte. I've been pouring these all week.


These lattes are the precursor to a real rosetta, which looks like this.



I am so close it hurts. My milk is a little bit dry (read: a touch foamy) and once I deal with that I think I should have this suckah DOWN son!

...

Here's another drink to order when you get to the Silverbean. I made it for Dahn. It's understated and wonderful.

Simple.
(double shot, half sweet)
- pour a half shot of sweet into a demi-tasse (hazelnut or cinnamon work wonderfully)
- pour a beautiful, crema topped double shot into the demi-tasse. Serve.

There you go kids. News on the coffee front.

essayer.

ants, beavers, saints, bees,
and more than these are trying
much harder than me

haaseltons. has a computer.

I am in Haaseltons. Because they have a computer. And because sometimes my girls hang out here.

I asked if the girl behind the bar could make up a drink for me. She said yes. I was pleased.
I asked for last summers hands down favourite iced drink: a four-shot of espresso over ice with a shot of vanilla topped with soymilk.

She had no idea what I meant.

I am giving instructions to the whole world via the interweb on how to make this drink.

1. take a large cup. fill with ice
2. pour vanilla syrup over ice (caramel, hazelnut, and cinnamon syrups also work wonderfully)
3. brew two double short shots of espresso and pour them over the ice
4. take soymilk. pour it over the espresso.
5. serve, it looks nice with a drizzle of chocolate or a shot of whip. Orange curls are great too if you have them on hand.

And voila. An insanely caffienated adventure in deliciousness. If you want one, come to the Silverbean when I'm working. Ask for the iced fourshot. I can even make it decaf.

jesus' blood
never failed me
yet

never failed me yet
jesus' blood
never failed me yet

this one thing I know
that he loves me so.

jesus' blood never failed me yet.

omg bunny.

I have just spent the last half hour looking at baby bunnies. Alone in an office. Saying AWWWWW... in a rising crescendo... do the same, go here. (thanks for the link dahn... I'm wasting my life)
however I need you all to know that in my journey of bunnies and kitties...
this has been the greatest eleven minutes of my life.

(how much can they carry??)