Author: Fee Writes

Brexist And What It Means

Brexist And What It Means

The Poms have done it …. they’ve left the European Union to stand alone.  What does this mean?

brexist

Don’t ask me – I have no idea at all what is going to happen.  And, nobody does.

What I do think is that people in Britain, like people in USA are just a little fed up with the status quo. There’s a bit of a hum here in N.Z. as well, can’t speak for Australia but I think the poorer European countries are also rattling the cage as in the case of Greece. Unfortunately for Greece the masters whipped the bars and they shrank back – for now anyway.

There is a bit of a revolution going on in the West and it’s going to be fascinating to watch.

The old order is just too top heavy and I reckon the imploding process has now started.

Just my quick thought for the day.

 

 

 

 

 




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All I Want Is A Nice Glass Of Wine!

All I Want Is A Nice Glass Of Wine!

The other day I had yet another example of the Internet showing you that you can find anything to go along with what you believe.

Internet

It started when an article popped up in my FB newsfeed from a friend who shared Moms Across America. The article was about some research showing that Roundup’s toxic chemical, Glyphosate, has been found in 100 California wines – 100 tested and all showing Glyphosate. There were also Organic wines in this group as well.
Now, yes, my first reaction was one of horror as I love my wine and when in California will partake of the occasional red from the Mendocino region.

However, and this is where my cynical and curious mind-set took over, how much of this was true and how much was blown up and reported out of context?
Note: Please don’t construe that last sentence as the writer being a Monsanto supporter – Ed. 

So into a bit of researching I went.

The first thing I came across was the blog Reason.com, who basically said that the Moms Against Monsanto were really stupid and just doing the big old scaremongering. They had looked into the research and happily reported that, yes it was true that scienceGlyphosate was found in the 100 wines, however, the amount was so minuscule it would pose no health threat at all.

See …. you can find anything you want. So I made the choice not to “share” the scientific findings …… just yet! I would wait.

But then another thought struck. (I’m known to have the occasional thought, not that it does me much good!)

So if there is a minuscule amount of Roundup (let’s get real, that’s what it is), showing up in organic wine, then it must also be showing up in other organic produce. I am well aware of the fact that there is no place on this earth that is devoid of man made chemicals.

Now comes the argument. If that is the case, then every time we sit down to partake of food – be it organic or not – we ingest Glyphosate. Take that one step further – Wouldn’t that mean that each product on your plate and in your glass which has a minuscule amount that it would then equal more of a significant amount  ????

chemotherapyGlyphosate is carcinogenic – the cancer rate is increasing. Here’s my next question ….

Do the shareholders of Monsanto also have shares in one of these companies:
Novartis, Amgen or Roche – the top three Chemotherapy drug makers. ????

Am I being too cynical here? – would love to know what you think in the comments below .. or give me a thumbs up.

 

 

 

 

 




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The Latest Residence.

The Latest Residence.

I have been in this home for exactly one week and four days … bit remiss of me not to let you all know.

Beautiful Burma

So what’s it like? Let me first introduce you to Puddy Girl (pronunciation as in pudding).

  • Puddy Girl is a Burma.
  • Puddy Girl is very little.
  • Puddy Girl is very fluffy.
  • Puddy Girl is very old.
  • Puddy Girl rules the house.

O.k. enough of the “See Spot Run” type of writing, I know you’re a well educated and intelligent reader.

cd_575a34a90318bShe was fine the first day, then, once she realised that mum was not home, she got a bit huffy. Of course, not when the food was about….oh no, that’s when she really cozied up. But once the tummy was full, she would just give me the evil stare and be very stand-offish until it was time to eat again.

This little kitty has her own cat door, which she is perfectly capable of using. However, it seemed to tickle her sense of power to go and sit by the sliding door, start meowing and turn and stare at me. Softy that I am when it comes to cats, I’d jump to attention and go open the door. With that she’d saunter out about three steps (well, let’s say four to cover all of her paws), stop, sit for few seconds with her tail across the slide rail, then get up and come back inside.

cd_575a328f436feJust over a week later and at night there was a break through. She jumped up on my knee, settled down and went to sleep while I watched TV. Score one for the cat sitter!

So I’m back in the Pyes Pa area of Tauranga city. It is the older part, rather than the newer sub-division of the last home in the same suburb. The streets are tree-lined, the property has a well established garden, wonderful herbs, even veggies that I’m able to harvest along with a very old apple tree. I think I may have to make an apple crumble one night!!!! I’ve discovered an awesome ice-cream made from coconut milk rather than dairy. It’s called Little Island  and it’s the best dairy alternative yet. As you can see, there’s a nice selection

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And speaking of all things yum. Our own N.Z. company, Whittakers, has brought out the most delish chocolate ever!!!!! This is the Doris Plum and Almond one that Nigella has been advertising on TV – and, I’ll admit, she’s spot on with how yum it is. Good on Whittakers AND… it’s vegan!

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Only one other change to report. I’ve picked up the reins as co-ordinator for SAFE again, only this time I have a lovely lady sharing the role. This is making it a whole lot easier and already we’re booked to have a stall at one of the Saturday markets.

As we all know, it’s now winter. Damn!

Oh, and Puddy Girl has decided not to set the china dog onto me after all … we’re quite good friends now.

 

 

 

 

 




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Here’s Something That Might Tweak Your Thought Process..

Here’s Something That Might Tweak Your Thought Process..

I follow a woman on twitter called Pamela Geller.  More from the point of her insanity and her ridiculous vlogs. Which demonstrates to me how the other half think.

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She’s an American political activist and very outspoken about the Islamization of America. Her hatred is pretty far out there … a bit like Sarah Palin in her heyday, (who seems to be having a comeback now that the Donald is welding some power …. more entertainment for me).

But Pamela wrote something I was quite surprised at. You see, the lovely Dali Lama came out the other day talking about refugees:

“When we look into the face of every single refugee, especially the children and women, we can feel their suffering,”

said the Tibetan spiritual leader, who has himself lived in exile for over half a century.

“A human being who is a bit more fortunate has the duty to help them. On the other hand, there are too many now,”

he said, according to the German translation of the interview in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.

“Europe, for example Germany, cannot become an Arab country,”

Source:  RedState

cd_574facf53fe33His idea is that we should look after them only until they are able to return to their country and help rebuild it. This is an idea that I, too, believe is the way to go. From my understanding, no true refugees ever wants to leave their homeland … let’s face it – would you? And, I’m sure you’d want to “go home” to reclaim your country as soon as you could.

As for Pamela Geller – well, being the Islam hater that she is, she jumped on what the Dali Lama had said. Most of what she wrote was just agreeing with him and dissing others e.g. The Pope. However, she did write one sentence that pretty much summed up the ongoing ebbing and flowing of cultures:

“It is an obvious, practically mathematical argument to say that if you continue to import people from one country into another country, and that the people from the other country do not adapt to the new country but bring with them the ways and language and culture of their old country, that the new country will eventually become the new geographic location for what is in essence the other country. This is not a complicated idea, despite my ridiculous sentence.”

Source:  PamelaGellar

Perhaps this is the way of the future? Perhaps New Zealand will morph into a hybrid of Asian and Pacific and a completely new culture will emerge?
Perhaps Europe will meld into a combined Christian/Islamic culture?
Or perhaps the dominant culture will win as in the case of the  English over the American Indians, to name just one.

Remember that old song about the “Melting Pot” ?? It was about colour and religions, well now, perhaps we can sing it again with the idea of cultures????

It will be a shame to see cultures die out, but it’s happened before –
The Incas and the Aztecs, the ancients Romans and ancient Greeks. The Persians, the Mayan, the Druids and going right back to the beginning – the Mesopotamian Civilisation.

It won’t happen in my lifetime and not even in your lifetime, dear reader, but it will happen …. of course that’s if there is a living, breathing planet and we haven’t killed it first.thoughts

Would like to know your thoughts if you’re game enough to express them in the comments below

p.s. In case you’re wondering … I also follow John Oliver, The Young Turks, NZ The Daily Blog along with others…all via social media.

 

 

 

 

 




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What Do You Put Your Energy Into?

What Do You Put Your Energy Into?

I know I say that I am “vegan”, but in actual fact, I’m more vegetarian than a vegan.

vegetarian food

But if I say that then the assumption is that I eat dairy and eggs. By definition, a vegetarian only eats plant foods, no animal products at all. Think about it – the word itself should give you a clue – vege-tarian …. vege as in vegetables – I don’t see “dairy” or “egg” anywhere in that word at all.

The problem is that the food industry has cosied up to the corporations and have indoctrinated the public into believing that a vegetarian is someone who eats plant foods, dairy products and eggs, hence the animal food industry still is able to make money from this ever-growing portion of the public.

Even the medical fraternity is on board with this, by declaring that one must have dairy in order to get the right supply of calcium – Doctors, who have never had a decent lesson in nutrition at all.

The word “vegan” is taken from the first three and last two letters of the word vegetarian. Being vegan is a lifestyle. One that is totally devoid of animal products. For example not wearing leather.

So even though I say I am vegan, my reason for eating a plant-based diet is first and foremost, the environment. Yes, I abhor animal exploitation in any form and I do choose products I know to have no animal content nor have they been tested on animals.

But, because my number one reason is the environment, I do recycle. Which means I do visit op-shops (thrift stores for my American friends), and I do purchase leather items. The reason is that leather is one of the hardest things to break down, and then, when it does, it is so full of chemicals that it contaminates the ground.

This is where I come into odds with Vegans. Vegans don’t wear leather at all as their argument is, (and I have to concede they have a point), it doesn’t matter if you have recycled it, wearing it still says to the world that you condone the use of leather.

EnvironmentWhat a quandary. But in a round-about way, this brings me to the title of this post. If you try and take on too much … it just messes with your head! Well, it does with mine. So out of all the BIG issues – environment, animal welfare, poverty, world hunger, world peace etc etc etc
I have chosen the Environment. My reason? Simple logic – if we don’t have an environment, we don’t have anything else.

I’ve just spent 5 weeks in the home at Papamoa and in that time I only needed to put the rubbish out once which was on the last day…and even then the bag was not full. The home I was in had a compost (in fact had both normal and worm farm types), had the recycle buckets for glass, plastic, paper and cans and the rest went into the council bag to be put out on the curb.

I’m also very realistic. I am fully aware that here in N.Z. our recycling efforts (paper, plastic, glass etc), are just a token gesture, most of the stuff goes to landfill or gets shipped offshore. We actually have a poor record of encouraging the recycling industry. But that is something I really don’t have control over. What I do have control of is what I can personally do for the environment.

Like:

  • I re-use plastic bags (like bread bags) as often as I can … these odd plastic bags come with me to the supermarket and I put the fruit/veggies into them rather than get a new one.
  • The bags for nuts I’ve recycled so many times it’s hard to find the space to write the number on as there are so many numbers now crossed out.
  • Naturally, I have the canvas/jute reusable bags. Lucky for me I bought several of them in America, they’re big and sturdy and go through the wash like a pro.
  • I compost where I can, use a garbage disposal unit (the one in a sink) or boil up my peelings which I freeze to use as stock/soup.

I don’t like to label myself an Environmentalist, nor a “Greenie” – I think those titles are reserved for the more wealthy who are able to go the whole hog, and the only reason I say I’m a vegan is so my food choice is understood in this warped society. I just live the best way I know how and try to “do my bit” for the environment that I am currently living in.

What do you put your energy into?

2021 Update

I now classify myself as vegan, although the environment is uppermost. My health has put me on a whole food plant-based way of eating. I do some activism with Anonymous for the Voiceless group. You can find more information about all things Vegan and Plant-based at my resource website: Gold Card Vegan

 

 

 

 

 




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I’m On Bluesky

I’m On Bluesky

About Me

fee o'shea

Thanks for dropping by. My name is Fee O’Shea. I’m a mother and grandma, an author, and a Comedy Improver.
This blog is for my thoughts, my rants, raves, reviews and things that have grabbed my attention. From politics to social media to beauty, health and the environment. Fee’s World is written to bring you a smile or get you thinking. Enjoy.

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