Cooking...not one of my fave things to do!

I used to cook. I used to enjoy finding a recipe and making something new. Exploring foods from different cultures.

I still enjoy trying something new and trying foods from different cultures.

I don't have time to cook. I don't really enjoy it --- it's a time suck. You cook, you have a mess and then it's gone.

I suppose if there were more than two of us I might feel differently. Well, probably not. But cooking for just two, especially two who eat so differently, is a waste. Unless I'm making something often, cooking a lot, the ingredients I buy are going to go to waste.

I travel with my job (art shows), I travel for family things (often), so it's hit or miss when I'm home. My microwave gets a good workout.

Today is the exception. I have been eating a lot of oven-roasted veggies at my parents. They are good, but I like them cooked a bit more. I like crunchy. I like spices.

So, yesterday on the way home from my parents I stopped to pick up a bag of mixed broccoli and cauliflower with the idea I would roast them. Turns out that everyone else in the world must have decided they wanted to do the same as every single bag, all sizes, had vanished.

Being the focused person I am I went back over to the loose stuff...and found that I could buy a whole organic head of cauliflower, a bag of organic baby mixed color carrots, an onion, and broccoli heads for roughly the same price as the bag of broccoli and cauliflower.

Today I am roasting veggies. I ended up with four full cookie sheets of them. But they are soooo good! I am stuffed as I have to try each batch. Of course.

My "recipe":

1 large sweet onion, sliced into thin wedges that separate when mixed.
1 large head of cauliflower, cut up into small florets and pieces
About the same amount of broccoli heads, cut up into small florets and pieces
1 bag of mixed baby carrots cut up

I mixed them all with olive oil (just dumped a bunch so no measurements, although some of the recipes I saw said about 1/3 cup). I added salt and tossed.

Half of them simply had salt and olive oil.

I cooked that batch at 425 degrees for 20 minutes, turning once halfway through.

For the second half I added a zesty spice blend from Kroger and minced garlic. I also bumped the oven temp to 450 degrees so they'd get crispier faster. I like those brown edges. I still turned them over halfway through.

I like them both ways. I like them hot and I like them cold. I also like adding some balsamic vinegar over them in small batches. Now you know how I managed to write three blog posts today! I had plenty of writing time. Cooking is a time-suck.

San Francisco Passes First 'Do Not Mail' Resolution in Nation

RJ Note: Junk mail is certainly a subject which brings to mind every trip I make to open my mail box. Loads and loads of unwanted mail fall over the ground as I trek to the trashcan to throw it away. I like the idea of reducing the mountains of it. I like the idea of conserving trees. Though I wonder who decides the definition of junk mail. After all, one man's trash is another's treasure.

/PRNewswire / -- The San Francisco Board of Supervisors today passed a resolution calling on California to create a Do Not Mail Registry giving its citizens the choice to stop receiving unwanted junk mail.

Though non-binding, the resolution represents the first time American lawmakers have withstood pressure from the direct mail industry and the U.S. Postal Service to side with the majority of Americans.

Sponsored by Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, the board approved the resolution by a 9-2 vote.

"Until now, junk mailers have stifled all efforts to give Americans what they want: an enforceable, comprehensive solution to junk mail's waste and annoyance" said ForestEthics Executive Director Todd Paglia. "San Francisco is the first city in the United States to take political action against junk mail, marking the beginning of a long-awaited government intervention to protect citizens from relentless and predatory junk mailers."

Bills calling for Do Not Mail Registries have failed in more than 20 states, despite widespread frustration with junk mail. A 2007 Zogby poll revealed that 89% of Americans support the creation of a national registry.

"Reducing junk mail is in keeping with our nation's efforts to reduce our carbon footprint and lead more sustainable lifestyles," said Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, upon passage of his Do Not Mail Resolution. "Just as Do Not Call overcame industry opposition to become the most popular consumer rights bill in history, I hope that this resolution will empower our representatives on the state and federal level to represent their constituents on this issue."

Supervisor Mirkarimi has a record of trailblazing leadership on a variety of issues and policies, including the nation's first municipal ban on plastic bags, and commuter benefits requirements for San Francisco businesses.

More than 93,000 Americans have signed ForestEthics' petition at donotmail.org calling for the creation of a national Do Not Mail Registry.

Every year 100 million trees are logged to produce the 100 billion pieces of junk mail Americans receive. Junk mail's production generates the carbon emissions of over 9 million cars. U.S. junk mail accounts for 30% of all the mail delivered in the world, though 44% of it goes to landfills unopened.

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