I'd love to discuss gardening, plants, and vegetarian cooking with those interested here on the Encounter Board, but wasn't sure where this thread best fit. I am an avid vegetarian cook and "budding" organic gardener and would love tips or swapping gardening/cooking secrets with anyone as this spring season begins!

Also, my partner and I are members of a CSA here in the Chicago area, which stands for Community Supported Agriculture. We purchase a "share" of a local farm every year (for the spring and summer seasons) and pick up our box of goodies each week at a local drop-off site. Any of you do that? Perhaps we are getting the same veggies and fruits and can share ideas about what else we can do with a box of beets or kohlrabi!

Finally--and this is almost off topic--but what do you think of the spiritual life of plants (or their spiritual residue of past owners or their spiritual interaction with humans)? Clearly, nature is infused with the spirit source--thank you, Whitman, Emerson, Thoreau, Coleridge, Oliver, Berry, Muir, Abbey, etc, etc, etc! I have a specific example/question that I am reminded of during each morning meditation sit. In my yoga/meditation room at home, I have two plants that belonged to my dear (best) friend who died 2 years ago (a sudden tragic death at the young age of 37). In the room, there are other artifacts of her as well . . .but the plants--lately, I have had the realization, or question rather, that the oxygen that her plants are breathing out to me now as I sit in meditation each morning may actually be the residual effects of her breath--her CO2--that she gave to those plants? I don't know if this is biologically correct at all, but it is quite a powerful thought to meditate upon each morning . . . a beautiful circle of life . . . creation and destruction . . . and the ongoing presence of spirit . . . om shiva om.

_/|\_
steph

__________________
"I wasn't going to spend my life doing what had already been done." - Georgia O'Keeffe

Well the Inca Shamans have a healing ritual that they perform
to get rid of heavy energy in one's energy body. i used to
practice it regularly, but haven't for centuries now. (just kidding).
(or maybe not. Ha!) They call this heavy energy Hucha. They
don't define energy as being good or bad, but rather light and
heavy and they say that humans are the only living things on
mother earth who create it. Anyway Hucha is the heavy energy
and Sami is the light energy and all the work is done thru the
spiritual stomach. We draw the light energy from the sky while
sending the heavy energy down to Mother Earth. They say the
Hucha does not hurt Mother Earth; that she makes use of it
much like she makes use of compost or manure to help her
grow beautiful and necessary things.
As for plants absorbing and retaining our energy? Maybe; but
i can't imagine it. They seem to feel love and neglect though;
if they have to rely on us (the wild plants aren't effected by
us at all, i don't think) but i don't think they retain the carbon
dioxide they take in from us but rather transform it immediately
to oxygen, much like we do the opposite thru our own breathing.
i usually sleep pretty well but i couldn't sleep tonight for
some reason. Maybe now i can.
Love,
Chi

i may have been hasty in stating that the wild ones aren't
effected by us. there are the pesticides that reach them
and other pollutants, i imagine. But do they adapt through
time like we do eventually to just about everything that
comes along?

__________________
((((((( A Wish for All )))))))
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3TeskgpWvE&feature=related

Hey Steph,
This might interest you: "The Backster Effect"
http://lifeos.wordpress.com/2008/07...ackster-effect/

http://psychic-delia.com/psychic-re...ackster-effect/

When i read this, i thought to myself; why does this guy
ring such a strong bell with me? Turns out it's because he's
archived in the 2007 IE Archives.

Click on Broadcast Shows after you log on to the homepage,
Then click on the IE Radio link all the way to the left of SM's picture.
Then on 2007 and scroll down to March 18th. i remember this
show now.
Reopening my mind. Soft Grin...
Love,
Chi

__________________
((((((( A Wish for All )))))))
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3TeskgpWvE&feature=related

Chi,

I'll check out all of your suggestions, above! i have quite the commute to/from work, and lately, i've been listening to archived independent expression broadcasts (thank you bluetooth technology!). will queue up your suggestions.

Also . . . i'm not convinced my theory on plant respiration is not wholly off point. Plants certainly do not breathe out oxygen at nearly the same rate we breathe out CO2 . . . will continue to research.

This is a bit off topic, but not quite . . . about a month or so ago on NPR, there was an interview with a man named Robert Elwood who had just written an article in The Journal of Experimental Biology about how shock avoidance by discrimination learning in the shore crab is consistent with a key criterion of pain. I have not read the actual article yet, but in the interview, Mr. Elwood explained that his experiment was inspired by what he thought was the inhumane treatment of crab, muscles, and other sea life in the insatiable food consumption market of the west. His research and experiment was basically advocating for the more humane treatment of crabs, etc.--akin to the awareness some in our culture have regarding more humane treatment of mammals and chickens, etc. , in the food consumption market (although I do not eat animals, myself, advocating a more reasonable and humane way of treating animals before they enter they inevitably enter the food chain seems an admirable pursuit).

Anyway, I am getting off point here--what was my point?--I think I was going to draw the analogy (or question) of fear/pain/emotions of plants. In fact, I believe Mr. Elwood brought up carrots in his interview. Ah, something to queue up for the long commute into the office . . . Yes, that is where I was going . . . and where I am . . . now.

namaste, bowls of cherries!
_/|\_
steph

__________________
"I wasn't going to spend my life doing what had already been done." - Georgia O'Keeffe

by the way . . . we just got notice today that we are all signed up for our CSA (community supported agriculture) boxes for the spring/summer! looking forward to boxes of beets, kohlrabi, asparagus, and baby lettuces starting in April! Anyone else do this? Would love to swap seasonal (vegetarian) recipes!

two hands together
_/|\_
steph

__________________
"I wasn't going to spend my life doing what had already been done." - Georgia O'Keeffe