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It's Hunger Challenge Week

And, of course, Mercury Retrograde happens and I have limited internet access. Sigh. But I will do my best to keep up with blogging the challenge.

First a bit of good news. Tyson Foods is repeating their social media support program. Comment on their blog or tweet a hunger fact with the hash tag #HChal and Tyson will donate food to Bay Area food banks. Last year that was five truckloads. The Social Media Club is supporting Tyson's social media efforts and Kristie Wells is asking everyone to up the support by donating $5 if they can this month to feeding the hungry.

On a personal note, I learned a great deal from how I did the challenge last year. This year I'm modifying my approach. Last year I purchased $21 worth of groceries and ate only that for the week. This year I recognize that I would likely buy bargains as they became available and freeze or store items to take advantage of savings. So my meals will be at the $4 a day limit for this year but using some ingredients on hand. Many of my staple items will return, however.

Staples like peanut butter which I had on an English muffin this morning for breakfast. It was a way to get some cheap protein in to start the day. Eggs on a regular coupon special at Safeway cost $1.49 for 18 so they will also appear on the menu most days. I also wisely snapped up a canister of Folger's coffee for $3.00 so I can maintain my caffeine addiction. And, of course, the return of doctored-up ramen in my life.

Breakfast thus costs out at:

Coffee:                     $0.10
OJ:                             $0.31
Peanut butter:      $0.14
English muffin:     $0.25

Total:  $0.80 and at less than $1.00 for one meal, well within my $4.00/day budget.

In my next post I'll cost out and give some ideas for soup which is a great, flexible option.

On the political front, eating this cheaply means losing the opportunity to support practices I would normally with my consumer dollars such as a more chicken-like existence for egg-laying hens (buying eggs at the farmers market where I can learn how the chickens are raised and treated) or fair trade, organic, shade-grown coffee. Beyond the challenge of feeding poor people, how can we do it in a way that is humane, respects the health and economic well being of those who grow and harvest our food and doesn't destroy the planet along the way?

Palin on Polar Bears

The heartbreaking picture of the polar bears with 400 miles to swim to the nearest ice

Scientists found this polar bear swimming in Alaska's Chukchi Sea and fear it
and eight others will drown in an impossible 400 mile swim back to shore

Sarah Palin, however, thinks they don't need protection:

Americans should become involved in the issue of climate change by offering suggestions for constructive action to their state governments. But listing the polar bear as threatened is the wrong way to get to the right answer.

(HT polar bear picture: Jeremiah Owyang)

Monday, Monday - Topics of the Day

OK a few more things to discuss this fine, busy Monday...

I don't really follow tennis but it was great to see that Venus Williams won making a great comeback of sorts.

She's like Tiger Woods. Or Michael Jordan. Or Joe Montana. She's got the game of a champion, and more important, the mind of a champion. Others have their doubts, but not Venus Williams,       not the woman with the big serve and the bigger heart.

A new 7 wonders of the world were chosen (only the pyramids exist from the original seven).  I don't get out much so I can't comment knowledgeably but unsurprisingly there's already controversy over the selections.

Al Gore's Live Earth concerts were fairly well ignored except on the web.  No observers seemed to come away from the event believing that the 24 hours of music will prove to be a tipping point for awareness leading to sufficient grassroots action to effect political change towards action for stopping global warming.  Many also questioned the green-ness of the event of itself.

A Strategy for Voting with my Pocketbook

While listening to NPR this afternoon I had an idea - I think it's bright but time will tell.

The piece on All Things Considered was about the changing approach to energy policy now that Democrats are a majority in the Senate.    Two years ago the Republican controlled Congress passed an energy bill that granted tax breaks to oil and gas companies.  Now, Democrats are looking at funding alternative energy sources and taxing Big Oil.  It is no big surprise that most of the Senators mentioned in the piece advocated the interests of their supporters and constituents - Max Baucus (D-MT) who has received the most support from alternative energy interests is leading the charge to tax oil interests.  Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and a fan of corn-fueled ethanol supported the bill which made it out of committee.  Robert Byrd (D-WV) supported an amendment  to subsidize liquid coal development.

But the sound bite I enjoyed most came from one of my Senators, Barbara Boxer (D-CA).  Boxer voted against two liquid coal amendments with varying degrees of environmental controls applied because she believes the money would be better spent on finding alternatives to fossil fuels, not less-bad versions of fossil fuels, which are ultimately unsustainable. 

Ding!  Boxer gets it and gets my vote.