Earth Hour Panic and Baloney

A whole lotta smoke… but it smelled good for a few minutes. That was the best way to describe our participation in “Earth Hour II”.

The Lincoln’s at 925 Western Ave, Peterborough, Ontario, in The Country of Canada and part of the Western Hemisphere – turned out their lights. And when we did we lt about four candles in our main living room and our kitchen. And admittedly we had on two TVs… Great Grandma Lincoln wanted to watch her Hockey Game – and Alida and I were bored… watching some stupid…??? Can’t remember now what it was…

We checked out on our street to see if there was anyone else that had adopted the Guilt Trip laid on to them by “the Earth Hour make a job for yourself kind of interfering people” – or “the Candle Makers of the World Group”.

Almost everyone on our street was in darkness except two close-by neighbors – who have timers on their lights I am guessing and they were blazing away brightly. The others that were in darkness are usually in darkness – because they go to bed early – mostly older folk – seniors that snore early.

One of the comments by a Dr. John Enright, Thornhill, Ontario… stated..
“Salving my conscience with 60 minutes worth of token gestures will do little for the planet and may do more harm than good. A typical candle produces about 0.313 grams of carbon dioxide each minute. Producing an equivalent amount of light, using a fluorescent lamp, powered from a sooty old coal plant, produces about 0.158 grams per hour. That's more than 100 times more carbon dioxide from a candle. I did my part by keeping the candles off and the lights on.”

Thanks John… now I am guilty again for the next few weeks as I think that my four candles produced 100 times more carbon dioxide than a fluorescent lamp – each minute. Worse yet Dr. John… I breathed that all in for 60 ding dong minutes… enjoying the smell.

My wife had bought these little stinkers at a candle party of some kind – where they burned a whole bunch of these little mood setting, carbon dioxide producing blobs of wax.

Every once in a while I will burn the toast… so I light a candle. Goodness gracious… that action alone fills my kitchen with tons of carbon dioxide… which fills the rest of our house… whenI light a candle it needs about two hours of burning to get rid of or mask the burnt toast smell.

And I breath it all in… Thanks Dr. John…

Like most families over the past 60 years of my growing up… we have another room where odor is a small or larger problem. It is not as big as the other rooms in the rest of the house and it has three important fixtures in it… bathtub… sink and toilet. Yep you guessed right! That room tends to have odors in it at times. Dangerous gaseous substances that linger for quite a while… so we mask it as well.

My nose is sensitive to burnt toast, smelly bathrooms and rooms where people release “dangerous gaseous” fumes.

In my family I can remember that the minute that some one released “dangerous gaseous” fumes, another family member would quickly reach for the Eddie Match Box and then strike a sturdy wooden match that flared with his explosive burn of phosphorous and sulfur flash – that then proceeded to consume a valuable heritage piece of a tree. If the “dangerous gaseous” fumes were too great it may merit more than one Eddie Match. Oh boy… trees died… dangerous chemicals were burned in the presence of children and other “dangerous gaseous” fumes were release at the children’s breathing level.

How did I ever survive these 65 years? Burnt toast, bad BBQs, burning candles and “dangerous gaseous” fumes.

One scientific study by one of my University Profs long ago was startling for me. We were turning a major corner in our Microbiology Class as far as important information was concerned… information that could change our worlds. The Prof passed out small “petre” dishes prepared days before with different concoctions… then he instructed us to do a series of tests on the dishes contents to try to establish what was in the dish.

As I picked up one dish and looked at the gross contents – brown and ugly with orange hair like stuff growing from it… I pulled the lid from the dish… YUCK… it was “dangerous gaseous” fumes… produced by allowing the brown beans from someone’s supper do its stuff. I lost my scientific interest and tried to grab something to clear my nostrils that were now filed with “dangerous gaseous” fumes.

The Prof grinned and stated a scientific fact that has never left me. He said boldly… “Everyone F-A-R-T-S! Get over it.”

Earth Hour… hummpff! Candles and dangerous coal burning power plants… and dangerous light bulbs… what a bunch of baloney!

We have between 6 to 7 Billion people on Earth now. And each one is eating the wrong stuff at times… and Everyone F-A-R-T-S!

Do you realize how many matches need to be burned each year? Do you know how much spray is sprayed all over the stinky house to quell the smell?

No wonder why the Ozone Layer if being consumed. So turn off all the lights… for say a day… or a week… will it help? Nope – you have to stop feeding them too.

Earth Hour was kind of fun… but did it help? Sure… sure… if you say so… but panic and baloney and beans still rule… quick get a Match…

~ Murray Lincoln ~
http://www.murraylincoln.com/

Sources to consider…
The Jury is still Out on Earth Hour
http://www.thestar.com/comment/article/612095

A HILL OF BEANS - BAKED BEANS THAT IS

by Arleen Kaptur
The ole West loved them and movies depicted hungry cowpokes enjoying them over an open campfire. No barbecue is complete without them and kids enjoy them, not even knowing they are nutritious as well. So, don’t let another outdoor cooking opportunity pass by without Baked Beans. Everyone has a favorite family recipe or two handed down - keep that great tradition going. There is nothing wrong with trying new recipes, however, or creating your own favorite into a tradition –

Old-Fashioned Beans - 1 lb. pea or navy beans, water, 2 tsp. dry mustard, dash of pepper, 1 tbs. salt, 3 onions, chopped, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup molasses, 2 tbsp. sweet pickle juice, 1/4-lb. salt pork Wash and clean the beans. Cover with water and soak overnight. Drain. Add 2 cups water, mustard, pepper, salt, onions, brown sugar, molasses, pickle juice. Boil, covered, for about 1-1/2 hours. Beans should be wrinkled. Heat oven to 250. Cut salt pork into 1/2” cubes. Place in 2-quart bean pot. Cover with hot beans and their liquid. Sprinkle with pepper. Bake 8 hrs. covered, until very tender. When beans are baking for 6 hrs. add about 3/4 cup water or just enough to cover. Uncover the pot the last 1/2 hour. Old-fashioned flavor and worth the wait!

Boston Baked Beans - 2 cups navy beans, white beans, or Great Northern beans 1 tsp. salt, 1/4 lb. salt pork, 2 tsp. dry mustard, 5 tbs. dark-brown sugar, 4 tbs. molasses Wash the beans thoroughly. Soak overnight in water to cover. Add salt, stir and drain, reserving the liquid. Preheat the oven to 350. Cut off a third of the salt pork and place it on the bottom of the bean pot. Add the beans. Blend the mustard, brown sugar, and molasses with the reserved bean liquid and pour over the beans. Cover and bake for 6-1/2 hours, adding water as needed. Uncover for the final hour of cooking. Taste and add salt if desired. You don’t have to live in Boston to enjoy these beans.

Easy Beans - 6 slices bacon, cut into small pieces 3 1-lb. cans baked beans, 1 8-oz. can tomato sauce, 1 cup chopped onion, 1/2 cup catsup, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 2 tbs. prepared mustard, 1 tsp. salt, 5 drops bottled hot pepper sauce Cook bacon until crisp. Drain. Combine with beans. Add tomato sauce onion, catsup, brown sugar, mustard, salt, and hot pepper sauce. Preheat oven to 300. Bake uncovered in beanpot for 4-1/2 hours. Some like it hot! Adjust that hot sauce to your liking.

Lazy Beans - 4 slices bacon, cut into small pieces, 1/2 cup chopped onion, 2 1-lb. cans pork and beans, 2 tbs. brown sugar, 1-1/2 tbs. Worcestershire sauce, 1 tsp. prepared mustard Cook bacon until crisp and drain. Reserve 1-1/2 tbs. of the drippings. Crumble bacon. Cook onion in the reserved drippings until tender but not brown. Add to remaining ingredients, blending well. Place in casserole. Bake uncovered on grill with hood down for 2 to 2-1/2 hours. Enjoy the outdoors while these beans are slowly simmering on your grill.

OUT ON THE RANGE BEANS 1 32-oz. can baked beans, 1 cup beer, 1/2 cup very strong brewed coffee, 3/4 cup chopped onion, 12 cup chopped tomato, 4 hot dogs, cut into 1/2” pieces, 1 tbs. horseradish, 1/2 cup molasses, 1/2 cup barbecue sauce Blend all ingredients together. Place in oven-proof casserole. Bake at 300 for approximately 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Add additional beer if beans seem to be drying out. Great served at a campsite with all your other camping food.

QUICK BEANS 4 cans (16 ozs. each) baked beans, drained, 1-1/2 onion, chopped very fine, 1 lb. bacon, diced, cooked, and drained, 1 bottle (12 ozs.) chili sauce, 2 cups packed brown sugar Combine all the ingredients. Blend well and place in beanpot or casserole dish. Bake, uncovered, (350) for 1 hour. There’s nothing wrong with “quick” on a hot summer day.

SLOW COOKER BEANS 1 can (16 ozs.) dark kidney beans, drained and rinsed, 1 can (16 ozs.) light kidney beans, drained and rinsed, 1 can (16 ozs.) pinto beans, drained and rinsed, 1 (15 ozs.) can unsalted diced tomatoes, 2 green peppers, cut into strips, 1 onion, chopped, 1 tsp. oregano leaves, crushed, 1/2 tsp. ground cumin, 1 tsp. sage, 1/2 tsp. black pepper, water Combine all the ingredients in a slow cooker. Add water to cover the beans. Cook on HIGH for 6-7 hours. No heating up the kitchen - let your slow cooker do all the work.

Baked beans are a welcome addition to any outdoor meal. Serve them and see all the faces light up. Beans are a treat and healthy! Now that’s quite a bargain. ENJOY ©Arleen M. Kaptur 2002 June