A New Start in Wimberley Texas
July 10, 2011 | 
Author 
Gabriel on our new farm in Wimberley
Thank you to all our dear readers, we took a long break from our blog as we had to find a new farm (bigger and more beautiful), get ready to move and then of course the moving wiped us all out. Now we are busy getting the farm in order first things first a chicken coop and vegetable garden. I will blog these in the farm journal for anyone interested in seeing how we do it. Next spring we will be setting up the honey bees and this winter we will prepare for our goats and maybe that Dexter cow (or two) I’ve been hoping for… Dreams do come true. After all we are in Wimberley which I still cannot believe.
I have longed to have a farm in Wimberley for over 10 years since I first came out here with my then boyfriend and his family to visit his grandmother and see the family land. He had no desire to be a farmer or live in the country so we did end up going our separate ways. Now, i’m back and the land is so lovely even in this horrid drought we are having here in Texas.
Join us as we build our farm, cook natural and healthy foods, discuss important health, food and related politic topics as well as farming topics and enjoy your time here with Naturally Texan!
Meadow on our farm
More Politics – now they are after free speech and grassroots organizations
This piece of legislation reared it’s ugly head in July and was opposed by one vote, now it’s back. I do wish that they’d take NO for an answer instead of bombarding us with legislation over and over again until our Senators cave just to get rid of it and quit hearing about it.
This time they are going directly after the small, grassroots organizations that are opposing their tyranny. Of course they would do this, who is not surprised? They never expected so many people to stand up and defend their rights to free speech, freedom of food choices, freedom of health choices and more. Now they need to stomp out our organizations and force “disclosure” of our membership so they can harass us individually to make it as uncomfortable as possible to voice opposition.
This legislation, S. 3628, was barely defeated in the Senate last July but a similar bill passed in the House. We need to oppose this NOW! For those of you in Texas it is very important you give Senator Cornyn and Hutchison a call and ask them to Oppose Disclose. From our friends at Campaign for Liberty here are their numbers and exactly what you need to say:
“Please contact Senator John Cornyn at (202) 224-2934 and Senator Kay Hutchison at (202) 224-5922 right away and demand they OPPOSE DISCLOSE on every vote – including cloture.”
Everyone who cares about liberty and the right to organize our own political movements without harassment needs to stand up in opposition of this bill. Even if you don’t agree with the Campaign for Liberty this bill will quash the freedom we’ve enjoyed to oppose government overreach. I can even see them using this to go after members of Vaccine and nutrition awareness groups, as well as groups like our beloved farmers’ protection groups by forcing membership lists to be “disclosed” as well as donations.
The vote is TODAY so time is running out. Find your Senator here and email, call, write and tell them to Oppose Disclose! http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
Now invading our homes: S. 1619, the Dodd Homeowner Control Act
We’re being caged in from all sides. I don’t know if I should be appalled but I just can’t find the energy nor the innocence I once had to be surprised by anything these crooks do under the guise of government. Perhaps I’ve just become so cynical about our “lawmakers” and in truth I would be surprised if anyone except the usual handful, such as Ron Paul, has the guts to stand up against this tyranny and actually give a hoot what the people want, those same people that voted them into office.
But then again, there’s the creeping despair I feel as I watch one after another of these brazen attempts to imprison the American Citizens and I wonder when the land of the free is really and truly dead, which won’t take long as it’s nearly there, where will we go? Will Texans stand up for the freedom they once enjoyed? Will we fight off this tyranny as we have in the past or will we just allow ourselves to become enslaved.
What makes this even more pathetic in my eyes is that there seems to be no repercussions and those in power know it. They can have their campaigns of disinformation force-feeding us the gruel of contentment while sugar coating our very demise until we are thankful for it and begging for more.
People seem to be waking up but is it too little too late? After all it’s become obvious that our lawmakers know we’re angry, they know we don’t approve and they can see we are slowly but surely electing new Senators and Representatives that actually, well… Represent us and yet here they are nailing the coffin down on our Constitution, our bill of rights and our way of life. Maybe this blitz of legislation that includes the destruction of our rights to choose what food we eat, what commerce we participate in and what health care we want (if any) is their way to destroy all opposition by overwhelming us until we lie down like whipped dogs. I for one think it’s far past time we teach them that whipped dogs can and do bite back.
So, have any of you looked at this gem? As usual it’s in pretty packaging made to look like a wonderful new system to help our downtrodden and save the environment with “green” energy mandates. But look more closely. In reality it is taking even more taxes out of our pockets, forcing us to allow federal government intervention in the planning and building of homes, federal interference in zoning laws (see how Zoning got an organic farmer in Georgia hit with $5000 in fines in case you wonder what the danger is there) and oh yeah, the witch hunt against grassroots organizations like the Campaign for Liberty. With S. 1619 the Federal government would, in this one sweeping gesture, take over our homes, force our energy costs even higher in a time where most of us are already struggling to make ends meet, and force us into making changes to our homes in order to comply. Those that cannot afford it will I guess end up having the government seize their homes or maybe just arrested, fined and put into jail to keep company with those who couldn’t afford to buy themselves some health insurance.
We then truly become tenants of a landlord, to which we fully fund and are supposed to control buy in reality we have no control. For the people and by the people? No… not anymore. Against the people but funded by the people is more like.
I urge everyone to sign this petition against S. 1619 and keep our property rights out of the hands of bureaucrats. I am also urging everyone to bombard your Senators with calls and emails, tell them this will not stand and you will not be a part of it. http://chooseliberty.org/lca.aspx?pid=nd1
The petition specifically outlines these objections:
“Stop the Dodd Homeowner Control Act
Petition to the U.S. Senate”
Whereas: Passage of the Dodd Homeowner Control Act (S. 1619) would enforce federal zoning, energy and housing standards inspired by the radical globalist environmental agenda on communities all across America; and Whereas: The Dodd Homeowner Control Act will create a massive new Office of Sustainable Housing and Communities under the direction of a new “development czar;” and Whereas: Cities and towns would fall under the direction of un-elected boards, councils and governments tasked with enforcing the Development Czar’s edicts; and Whereas: Homeowners could be forced to spend tens of thousands to comply with zoning, energy and sustainability mandates; and Whereas: Passage of the Dodd Homeowner Control Act would be an unprecedented loss of freedom, as the federal government will be deciding what type of homes we have and where we are allowed to live; Therefore: I urge you to vote against S. 1619, the Dodd Homeowner Control Act, at every opportunity, including voting to maintain a filibuster.
Posted in Government Tyranny, News & Views, Politics, Property Rights | 
Tags: campaign for liberty, government tyranny, S1619 | 
No Comments »
Georgia hobby farmer faces fines for growing too many vegetables
Just when I thought I’ve seen it all I find this news alert. Did you ever imagine that growing your own food and selling the extra at a local farmer’s market could land you in court? I certainly didn’t.
This case is a prime example of how tyranny has become common place in the USA. Before the law of the land only needed to be involved in clear cases of the violation of rights of someone else now it is all about violating our rights to grow our own food, make our own food choice, consume the food we prefer and support the farmers that grow that food. We’ve seen the war against raw milk but now it’s being brought against hobby vegetable gardeners.
In case you find this hard to believe, and I don’t blame you, you can watch the local news segment on this hobby farmer’s plight on WSBTV Georgia’s website.
I’m still not sure what this man’s actual crime was though I can see they are using the excuse that he violated zoning laws however that doesn’t make sense as they continue to pursue the case against him even after he got his land rezoned. This smacks of harassment to me. And I have to wonder how much they will spend on court fees, and the time for the prosecutors to pursue this $5000 in fines. Probably enough to make it not worth it but of course they will anyway. Common sense rarely comes into play where governments are concerned.
Then there is the rather disturbing method they used to determine he was growing too many vegetables. No one is sure how the information was obtained without a search warrant or someone actually coming to the premises to determine his “violation. This has led many people to believe they are using satellite or aerial surveillance? Not hard to believe as we know they constantly fly over the countryside supposedly looking for illegal drug production. Is anything sacred anymore? Privacy fences and screening trees and bushes do little to protect against snooping eyes from the skies. When will enough be enough and Americans stand up and demand their rights especially to privacy and the freedom to life and liberty. And what is a better example of freedom than growing one’s own food? It’s hard for me to think of anything more vital and crucial really.
And the sad truth is that I doubt anyone really cares that he was growing vegetables but instead the local governments that are struggling to meet their budget needs in this horrendous economy, getting no help from the onerous Federal Government which is taking a bigger chunk out of our souls every day, has decided to become proactive in finding new fines to collect. That should really upset you, when the government decides instead to look for law breakers, and make new ones by invasive means, rather than just punish crimes committed in open air. It rather smacks of Orwell’s 1984 to me where everyone is under constant surveillance and scrutiny the very minutia of our lives recorded to find possible thought crimes to prosecute us.
“There was of course no way of knowing whether you were being watched at any given moment. How often, or on what system, the Thought Police plugged in on any individual wire was guesswork. It was even conceivable that they watched everybody all the time. But at any rate they could plug in your wire whenever they wanted to. You had to live—did live, from habit that became instinct—in the assumption that every sound you made was overheard, and, except in darkness, every movement scrutinized.” – George Orwell, 1984
Posted in Food Freedom, Government Tyranny, News & Views | Tags: farming freedom, government tyranny, organic farmer | No Comments »
Corn Industry seeking FDA sanction for fraud
News today that the corn industry is feeling the pressure of consumers who are coming to realize the significant health dangers associated with consumption of corn syrup and high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). However, instead of doing what is right and taking it out of our foods and off the market they are instead proposing to commit fraud by way of the FDA.
Just like with MSG, which can be labeled under a variety of innocent sounding names all sanctioned and condoned by the FDA the corn industry is seeking to hide HFCS and CS under a new name in order to fool consumers. Their proposed names is “corn sugar”.
You can read more here: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/16/opinion/16thu4.html
This really should come as no surprise. After seeing months of pro-HFCS advertising that obviously did little to dispell the truth the next step is hiding it and if the FDA’s past actions are any indication they will get a green light to do so. Anyone else trying to do something like this would be in serious trouble for committing fraud but as long as the FDA says it’s ok, well it is then. After all, the FDA is all powerful now telling us that walnuts are now considered drugs and that we do not have the right to choose our own food or make choices on what we will consume.
Once again the only hope we have to eat healthy foods is to not eat processed foods and to buy directly off farms and from farmers markets that we can trust. That is until the FDA makes it illegal to do so, which is their aim with their campaign against small farmers and raw milk. And of course they will have an easy job of it if our renegade Congress passes the “food safety bill” that is instead a dell knell for small farms, fresh produce and sustainable agriculture and making small organic farms illegal enterprises. But more on that later.
Posted in Corn Syrup, Dangerous Ingredients, FDA, Politics | Tags: corn industry, corn syrup, fda, hfcs, truth in labeling | 4 Comments »
Cultures for Health Giveaway on Nourished Kitchen
I am so excited to see a wonderful giveaway today from Cultures of Health hosted by one of my favorite blogs, Nourished Kitchen. It is a total kit to start fermenting vegetables at home. My entire family needs to eat more fermented foods at home and it has been a trial to convince my husband to give many of them a try. My son however loves real sauerkraut and I think he’d adore some of the recipes on Nourished Kitchen for fermented foods.
The perfect recipe to try and entice my reluctant hubby would be Nourished Kitchen’s recipe for Pickled Jalepeños. My husband loves jalepeños, and even though he’s from Maryland he embraced many of our often considered strange Texan quirks of putting jalepenos on everything from breakfast to dessert.
We also do a fair amount of Tex Mex, Spanish and Mexican cooking and these Pickled Jalepeños would be an excellent addition to my recipes.
If I win this kit I will be sure to share my new found discoveries with you all as i try out various recipes on Nourished Kitchen’s website and also experiment with my own. I remember a tasty looking spicy carrot pickle that Alton Brown made on Good Eats however that was not fermented. It would be great to give that one a try with some healthful probiotics in the mix.
Book Review: Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier
Rating: 5 Stars
This novel is an excellent read. It takes us on a journey through a most difficult time in our country’s history when the Civil War ravaged us and the greatest evils were perpetrated against mankind. There is a lot of grim, gruesome reality in the novel as well as poignant beauty. The love story drives the novel and yet our lovers spend the majority of the novel torn apart by war and distance.
Our female heroine, Ada and her friend Ruby show us the wonder of working the land and the power that can be gained supporting oneself through labor and industry. I am so inspired by many of the ideas I read in the book for my own farm that we are starting including the use of Martins to keep crows and birds of prey away from gardens and livestock. And with more research I find the Purple Martins need our help, have been trained by the Native Americans to nest near human habitation and that with a simple house (gourds being the traditional type) the birds will happily coexist with us and add beauty to our lives.
I learned various uses of corn meal, the various parts of a pig from “chitlins” to the brain, and the importance of lard in our traditional cooking methods.
I had hoped for more ideas and guides than the book offered though based on a review I had previously read. Still the book is an inspiration and I enjoyed every minute of it. It was rich in detail, the characters had depth and substance along with very real emotions, passions, flaws, and the beauty of spirit.
Our hero, Inman journeyed through the south after deserting the hospital where he was recovering from a near fatal wound. His journey was rife with adversity, danger and miracles. He would nearly starve then find a gift as if a higher power was looking out for him. His trials give perspective to all of us that struggle with day to day life, heartache and pain. If we can have just one ounce of his courage and leave our fates in God’s hands we can achieve great things.
All in all I give the book 5 stars. It is well written, the plot is driven, the characters are rich. Besides being entertaining it also encourages deep thinking not only about history, the civil war but about the nature of people from the most ruthless and sociopathic killers to the most honorable, caring and evolved souls.
Cold Mountain: Excellent Novel and Guidebook
Recipe: BBQ Baby Back Ribs
Posted in BBQ, Gluten Free Recipes, Meats, Recipes, Southern Favorites, Uncategorized | Tags: baby back ribs recipe, gluten free bbq recipe, home made bbq recipes | 1 Comment »
Holiday Feasts: July 4th BBQ Naturally Texan
This is one of my favorite holidays for food and fun. It may be 100 degrees outside but that hardly seems to matter when we sit in the shade, enjoy a good beer and fire up the grill. We love to serve some of our favorite BBQ delights with some cold or room temperature sides, some organic brewed tea (sweet tea is a southern favorite but we opt for plain or with a touch of stevia), and for dessert a peach cobbler.
This year we’re on a tight budget but the local Sprouts store had some good things on sale so we can still enjoy our holiday together. On our menu:
Baby Back Ribs
Dawn’s Texas Potato Salad
Creamed Corn
Grilled Vegetables (mix of zucchini, egg plant, onions, or whatever is ripe or on sale)
Beverages: Texas Beer, Coconut Kefir Water, “Sweet” Tea
Dessert
Peach Cobbler or Fresh Watermelon
Look back for our recipes as we add them and I hope you all have a happy, healthy and naturally Texan July 4th Celebration!
Posted in Holiday Menus, Holidays, Independence Day | Tags: bbq, holiday menu, independence day menu, July 4th food | No Comments »