The Sun in Taurus is making a conjunction to Ceres, the goddess of agriculture (as well as some secret rites), exact tomorrow. Speaking of secrets, Eric pointed out to me recently that “the composition of food is becoming a kind of secret rite of the chemical magi” – and yesterday I had a reason to pipe up about that.
I’d just read a newsletter from my awesome, neighborhood market, which offers local produce, meat and dairy as often as possible as well as organic as much as they can. They began as a bakery, and sell their own baked goods, soups and a selection of better-than average prepared meals — all with a full listing of ingredients. The newsletter proudly declared they would soon begin using a locally made butter in all of their baked goods. Exciting news — it’s great butter — except for one thing: I had discovered a few months ago that their unsalted butter (the kind most bakers use) contains an unnamed “natural flavoring.” Their salted butter is just sweet cream and sea salt.
I wrote an email to the manager of the market, who writes the newsletter, explaining how I noticed this ingredient — and that it might be a problem.
A few months ago I had a conversation on Facebook with a friend who has some dietary restrictions. She had posted a comment complaining how frustrated she was that an “all natural” butter seemed to be the key ingredient that was making her feel sick when she ate her own baked goods. I don’t know all her sensitivities, but I do know she bakes gluten-free and cooks from scratch because of her sensitivities.
I suggested this great, local, all-natural butter. My friend said the butter causing the reaction was that very brand and that she was going to have to go back to a national brand – which bummed her out.
I immediately did some investigating online, since the box of this local butter in my fridge clearly listed only cream and salt. I asked her if she used the tub variety instead of the stick variety, thinking that might have an additive, but she was using sticks. I checked out the label on the unsalted version at my neighborhood market. I was rather shocked to see that the unsalted butter also listed a “natural flavoring” — and figured whatever it is must be what my friend is sensitive to.
I explained to the manager of this great little market:
I realize that dietary sensitivities can be hard to pinpoint, hard to cater to, and that most people with really severe ones give up on prepared foods anyway (like my friend has). But given the reputation you guys have for good-quality ingredients in well-made, tasty food, I would hate to see that trust undermined by a mystery ingredient none of your customers would think to look for, and that the store’s labels likely wouldn’t list (or know to list).
I’m not sure what you or the bakers can or want to do with this information, or if it’s possible for you to find out from the people who make the butter what the “natural flavoring” is so that it can be listed as an ingredient on the baked goods, or if the recipes can be adjusted to use salted butter instead of unsalted. But I thought it might be worth it to bring the subject up.
Who knows — my friend might be the only person in the state who’s sensitive to whatever is in the unsalted butter, but I still think the information should be available.
I have a call in to the butter makers myself now, to see if they’ll tell me what it is. It may be “natural,” but that doesn’t mean everyone can eat it without consequences, and unless some one asks — and tells — no one can make an informed decision about eating the baked goods at my awesome little market.
Sun-Ceres is not, of course, operating in a vacuum. It is making an earth trine to Pluto in Capricorn, opening the door to that evolutionary, disruptive, life-changing energy in a way that might be a little more easeful. Taurus and Capricorn may tend to like tradition, but they also bring a sense of grounding in tangible reality. This trine brings Sun-Ceres into the Uranus-Pluto square itself, to which Mercury is still lending its powers of thought and communication.
That square wants us to take action, and speaking your mind fits the bill. With its proximity to the Aries Point, what you think of as ‘just one person’s little problem’ could turn out to have wide-ranging impact. When it comes to the state of our food supplies and our health, this impact can have very real and direct implications. What is Sun-Ceres bringing to your attention today and what do you have to say about it — and to whom?
Breaking news–breaking old new— on Daily Kos, The Gulf is can you believe this? (tongue in cheek) —toxic
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/04/26/1086617/-Gulf-Coast-Waters-Closed-to-Shrimping
and a blogger’s comment
http://windswhisperer.blogspot.com/2012/04/gulf-coast-waters-unfit-for-life-as-we.html
Thanks Jann for the info on the EPO. I will give that a good try. Right now it’s in remission, but it becomes more problematic month by month, and hormones throw me for a loop (I could write a book on how to give yourself fibromyalgia in 5 easy steps), so I’m avoiding that path altogether.
Huffy and BR, thanks for the European perspective. I had heard that the wheat was actually more “original” over there which is what led me to try, successfully. Too bad about the multi-national problem. I really hope those who are fighting the good fight will continue. It’s getting worse all the time. I just signed up for my local SlowFood chapter, and will be on even more of a food crusade than before; I feel a pressure wave coming on 😉
CaraSusanetta: Sorry, late response, but a good “body temperature thermostat” for women is Evening Primrose Oil (cold pressed, 1300 mg). I’ve also recently learned about Borage Oil having similar benefits. And sometimes, intense focused meditation on lowering the body temperature, but that takes lotsa work. Good luck.
JannKinz
…. The number of Italians suffering from gluten allergy/intolerance is extremely high and the figures are increasing all the time.
Hi CaraSusanetta and BR, the multinationals run the show here in Europe too! (and don’t forget, Mad Cow disease started in the UK). I live in the land of pasta and have gluten allergy. The crops are bombarded with crap here too. Though northern European countries such as Germany could be an exception to the rule, Italy certainly isn’t.
Dear Starrynight,
I had my Saturn return in 1989, when the Berlin Wall fell, then Communist Russia, and the world changed radically. And I went through a very long dark night of the soul, that I thought i’d never come out of at the time. “The trees are great giant tall redwoods and very wise”; you’re in a very different place from where you were for your first Saturn return, very wise, very aware. Think this time the journey might be a bit dark, but it’s full of light and joy too! Good luck with it! xxx
Hey Huffy,
Yeah, as Dante said and Jung referred to ‘Somewhere in mid life I found myself in a dark wood and the right way was lost…” Something like that! I’m 57, will be 58 June 5. I am now realizing that this 2nd Saturn return (natal Saturn is in Scorpio) is very similar to the first, yet different. I certainly found myself lost in the deep woods at 29 and undertook a journey…I didn’t think I’d ever find myself here again. Uncertainty and the unknown abound. But I’ve finally realized I was in a midlife crisis and trying to recapture my youth (in some rather strange metaphysical ways, trying to go back to that time and WHAT WORKED when I turned 30 and went through a great transformation) but I finally realized I can’t go back (and that I was trying to go back) So here I am lost in the woods. The trees are great giant tall redwoods and very wise. It is very dark and I am quite alone in the great forest but it comforts me to see the ancient trees and though I am lost, I trust it is exactly where I am meant to be.
@carasusanetta: The deal with not being “allergic”/sensitive to gluten in Europe even when one is “allergic” to it in the US I had noticed several years ago when a friend experienced all her “allergies” clear up for a year when she lived in Germany. My thought then was (and hers) the lack of herbicides and pesticides (or more judicial use of them) in Europe. The other thought we both had and I believe might have some validity is that the wheat especially in the US is almost a completely a different grain than its more species-original forebear–spelt. And my understanding that the European grain “Wheat” is more like the spelt. Another thanks and hats off to Monsanto for infecting the US first and now transporting their poisons and GMOs to the rest of the world.
Has anybody had success with alkalinization helping hot flashes? I’ve tried that grass stuff you mentioned and only the powderiness of it takes some getting used to, the flavor is surprisingly good. To me it kind of tastes chocolatey, even the berry one.
Yes Amanda
This appointment with Demeter opposed to Jupiter and Ceres will certainly be very interesting to study on the event plan, it will take be a listening to the nature of what will be moving around us
thank you Maeve! I will try some!
HS – Not gross, no worries. Without getting into tons of detail, I would recommend getting some of this stuff http://amazinggrass.com/ (the Amazing Greens type, maybe the berry, it’s what I prefer). It’s great for detoxing the system, cooling the body down (it’s very alkaline), and good for the digestion to boot. A nice daily tonic.
Maeve, that really helps too! Thanks! Some part of me that is wounded is coming to the surface so I can look at it and clean it. Part of that is happening in a public way, with people or partners, or in a situation I trust. In the dream, I cared for this guy and wanted nothing more than to bathe his head so that this blood hemorrhage would dissolve. But, like with all deep wounds, the flesh will continuously puss to flush out toxins and infection.
When I was 19, I had a severe breakout of some kind of rash. I had open sores on the back of my legs that wouldn’t stop gushing. Gross, I know, sorry. I saw 3 skin doctors who were all dolts. One finally said to apply it with warm towels soaked in salt. The salt finally dried the wound and gave me the scab I needed to regenerate the skin underneath. Then he gave me this most incredible cream. I had 3 relapses of this as the condition now became neurological. It spread all over my body. It was also a few months of upheaval in my life. In addition, I was doing purification practices. Whatever, it’s all good!
On the topic of wheat: I am gluten intolerant in the USA, but had no trouble with as much pasta or pizza as I wanted on vacation in Italy this past summer. We’re doing something horrible to our food supply here, as we all know…
Lunesoleil —
Ceres is technically classified as a dwarf planet, not an asteroid. Whereas Demeter is an asteroid… is that where the question is?
Ceres is Roman and Demeter is Greek; the fact that one name has been used does not mean the other cannot. They are equivalents, but often there are some differences in the myths between Greek and Roman versions. Astronomers use both name traditions, plus names from many other cultures, and many of the deities have similar roles or functions in the various mythologies.
Sorry — I’m having a little trouble understanding what exactly you’re getting at, though i think i see the Jupiter-Demeter opposition in the French issue you mention. Of course, that pairing mixes mythologies. 🙂 Zeus would be the Greek counterpart….
Thanks for the well wishes and advice.
It was a nasty bug. I am feeling way better now. My daughters said half their classmates were out with it but in them (the classmates) it included vomiting (they are younger, less immunity because of less exposure). I am still not at 100% but I can feel that it is way better. My energy is back up almost to normal.
I kind of fell off commenting on this thread yesterday, ’cause I had about three comments just… disappear into the ether. At first some of them were “awaiting moderation” (maybe because I had links in them?), and then the rest… just disappeared. So, I tried to take it as a hint to do something else.
HS – I see your dream as more of a … well, first, a question. Do you often dream of yourself as yourself, or do you project yourself in dreams? ‘Cause I was going to say, it seems more like a wanting to help other people kind of thing, but not knowing what to do, or how to start, or what to say.
So you were in a mostly safe place, but public. With a close friend (don’t know if you knew this fellow in your dream, but you were in bed, you were close), who was growing this thing off of his head. Something about him was draining him, almost like a parasite. Kinda like in the Resident Evil video games. And you see this thing that apparently no one else sees, and you don’t know what to do about it.
Perhaps it’s about processing what to do when you’re more aware of things than others. You see what’s painfully obvious to you, but how do you handle it when no one else sees it?
Huffy, Thank you!!
A big problem with urban farming in Detroit is that no one seems to be aware of the massive amounts of lead that’s in the ground. Nothing I’ve read about the initiative indicates that anyone is even aware that there is a lead problem.
One last comment on food in Detroit – generally, the only sources for “food” in the city are the infamous “party stores” or other convenience stores that sell liquor and beer, and the “food” sold in those stores is all processed and packaged. So, that’s what is available for people to buy, and it is generally cheaper than “real” food. I don’t know if there are any small independent groceries left in Detroit. For years, it was the Arab and Chaldean immigrants who had stores in the city, but I think that may have changed since 9/11. Another childhood memory: the “corner store” (Fred’s Market) a half a block from my house that sold the necessities, as well as some fresh produce and dairy and meat. Those stores were found every ten or twelve blocks. “Buy local” ain’t so new, but needs to have a comeback.
JannKinz
Not just the food…this morning’s email brought a notice from Crazy Wisdom Bookstore in Ann Arbor about a program on the hazards of “smart meters” for electricty (and gas) which have been installed throughout southeastern Michigan by DTE. “Installation of these wireless devices result in higher bills, numerous negative short and long term health effects, safety risks ( fire, wiring) and continuous exposure to electro-magnetic (EMF) and radio frequency (RF) radiation – “electro smog pollution,” deemed a serious health hazard by numerous medical authorities. Other issues concern consumer rights, (currently no opt out available) invasions of privacy, civil liberties, and other legal concerns.” They are deemed carcinogenic by WHO and AAEH. Apparently, the information is out there but I haven’t had a chance to vet it for credibilty. Sigh. Is there any area of our physical lives that we are not under attach, under seige?
Aword: There are five Whole Foods stores in Michigan (2 Ann Arbor, plus Troy, Rochester and West Bloomfield) all in allegedly affluent ‘burbs. A new store is planned for the location you cited, however, that is at the south end of what is now called “Midtown” – the area around Woodward Avenue that is south of Wayne State University, the Cultural and Arts Centers, and the DMC/Veterans Medical Center. Still not the neighborhoods, nor conducive for those with limited income. Better than nothing, I guess, though I don’t like Whole Foods capitulation to the government and Monsanto. Better hope for Detroit will be in the urban farming, and another one: a mobile produce van that goes to different locations. Hmmm…I seem to remember “peddlers” with small trucks selling produce in my childhood neighborhood in Detroit…
JannKinz
@ Amanda
Could not assign a title to an asteroid which already belongs to another it was my reflection. Demeter is currently in 16R in Scorpio, yesterday in writing my article I found a compromise between Ceres and Demeter (you need to add the code manually on serennu) Demeter arrives at my March and why I brandished the red flag. Demeter was in opposition Jupiter-this the fact that in France the ecology movement led by Eva Joly has not been truly heard. Ceres Bull is at opposition Demeter Scorpion, this appointment may be the subject of an article has him alone
Thanks for the suggestion dear MandyM. In fact I have started the menopause – though since coming off wheat and dairy last October my hormones are much more balanced.
Good luck with the detox JannK! It’s horrible going through it – but it really is worth it. In fact the worse one feels while detoxing – the more one realises how bad all that stuff is for ones system. I used to be violently sick every month – all that has stopped since coming off the wheat (and dairy).Make sure you’re eating well though – lots of rice and vegetables, etc, the body needs a lot of energy in this detox phase.
Hugging – going to bed with a person of the same sex (if you’re not gay), is about getting intimate with your male side (and shadow, as Sarah said).”I wanted to clean it off but wasn’t sure how to do it, or if I could” – the clue is in these words – it’s a desire to cleanse your wounded male side, but sounds like you’ve got that already! (must dash…).
Oh and Carrie – do hope you’re feeling better – might be worth going to doctor as suggested – though sounds like nasty bug to me. xxx
Amanda, try Astrodienst, astro.com. Demeter is currently at 17 Scorpio 01 Rx, about 11 degrees from opposition with Sun/Ceres.
aword —
if you scan lower on this thread, there is a description of and links to some of the other natural things that may count as “natural flavoring” — such as carotene and meat products. wild, huh?
my guess, since this is a local, family-owned company that otherwise seems to make good butter (the salted variety!), is that it’s not something nearly as sketchy as MSG. but we’ll see. i’ll have to try to give them another call in the morning — didn’t get to it tonight. at least they’re committed to using milk without rBGH.
Lunesoleil — i’m sorry, but i don’t understand your question. yes, demeter and ceres are greek and roman equivalent goddesses, but the article is about a conjunction between the sun and ceres this week.
i tried looking up 1108 demeter (the asteroid) in the minor planet ephemeris at serennu.com, but apparently tracy has not programmed it in. so i can’t tell where in the sky it is, or whether it is making any kind of aspects to the sun and ceres right now.
would you mind clarifying what it is that you’re asking? thanks!
Zero/Jann,
I read recently that Whole Foods was going into Detroit. John R and Mack? and a couple in the suburbs?
Possibly great strategy on their part.
I know they’re corporate; I didn’t realize however that there were no major chains in Detroit anymore – until now, I guess.
Best,
Linda
I avoid anything labeled with “natural flavor” only because that usually means “MSG” (as does the ingredient called “spices”)
Does seem strange that your butter company would add MSG, so must be using the term for something else. But my point is that for me, I avoid “natural flavor” because whatever it is is in hiding and therefore it is going to make me sick. (uber sensitive to additives).
I had a flash on seeing written in title Sun and Ceres that I had not had the idea in my last article. This combination makes me think of this desire to go to the garden and failure to put pots of flowers on her balcony.
I also have a question what is the difference that you made between Ceres and Demeter both asteroids and represents each goddess of agriculture… I have a beginning of answer on my blog… .with humor….
Carrie,
Gall bladder, liver, and pancreas each cause nausea when there is a problem. Time to see the doc.
Karena: Good to know that there are more people concerned about Michigan and the farms here. And the water. I have spent much time in the last five years working with several farmers, mainly on land use and zoning issues. Keep following the money thread, Karena.
I have been mystified as to why Michigan hasn’t followed in the steps of Wisconsin, given all that has happened since Snyder et al got control. One of the aggravations for me has been the repeal of the individual pricing law last year. The story was that Walmart and other big boxes pushed to have this 1976 law repealed. Perhaps the seeming apathy of Michiganders has to do with the weaker magnetic force here… I’m counting on Ur-Plu to bring Ceres front and center on these planetary issues.
But, the good news is that there have been numerous documentaries recently, especially on PBS, about our food and its sources, and especially about urban farming. Detroit, for all its bad rep, is moving forward with urban farming. In Detroit, that is a necessity since it is a “food desert” – there are no major grocery stores in the city of Detroit, and very few places for people to buy real and fresh food. Oops…not sure that even the affluent suburbs can buy “real and fresh” food in most stores. All the more reason to be friends with farmers, and to join a CSA.
JannKinz
Cassavia – you brought up two things I was going to mention. There is a recently published book – “Wheat Belly” by William Davis, MD. – on the topic of wheat. The author’s premise is that wheat has been hybridized so much that it is no longer digestible by humans. (See http://www.spiritualityhealth.com/magazine/2012-january-february/wheat-belly.html ). I may have posted this info here before. Forgive my repetition if I did.
I have been abstaining as much as possible from all grains and all dairy in the last month. That’s in addition to avoiding soy and corn products. (“Corn sugar” my ass.) Of course, that means that I am generally eating at home, but that ain’t all bad either. It’s all part of my effort to determine the source of joint pain, headaches, lethargy, and general digestive discomfort. Taint easy and the detox/shedding process hasn’t been fun either.
To echo many others, it’s all about the money. If I were paranoid, I’d believe the corporatocracy/theocracy/plutocracy are trying to kill off most of us.
And, yes, I did see a news blurb about the Vatican’s move to silence the nuns. Ha, that used to be the norm for the RCs – keep the nuns silent. Hmm…my memory says Vatican II was 1963, just before the Ur-Plu conjunction. And here we are at the turning of the zodiac wheel, where the seeds planted then are now getting weeded out to be able to grow.
JannKinz
Thanks Sarah!
Yeah, I connected right away with him as my shadow. There seems to be an element of slow release of a mental toxin here, perhaps something deeper, psychological. Perhaps because its at work, there seems to be a feeling that I can confront this more openly and confidently without hang ups. Also, because the tumor is exposed means there is no suppression/repression.
Okay, gonna think on it some more…
HS – My first suggestion is to draw your own associations to the separate elements in your dream. What comes to mind when you address each aspect? Dialogue with yourself a little here, see where it takes you.
From a Jungian perspective, a male figure is your shadow (female would be your anima), so you can perhaps also dialogue with that in mind: what does this man in bed with you have to say about what you disown about yourself?
— S
I was wondering if anyone could help with a dream I had last night.
I dreamt I was at work in my work kitchen and my bed was there. I was in bed with a guy too, not particularly sexual but we were sharing the bed nonetheless (I’m not gay btw). I felt a little conscious of the fact that some staff were still at work down the hall. I didn’t care too much though. And looking up at my friend, I noticed that blood was dripping from the back of his skull. It was forming a kind of grotesque appendage that was kind of redish pinkish. I thought, Is that thing going to fall off? Doesn’t it hurt? It was strange and fluidy. I wanted to clean it off but wasn’t sure how to do it, or if I could.
Anyway, I hope that’s not too graphic. But it was strange enough to make me wonder the meaning of it. Does anyone have any thoughts? (also, sorry to post this here as it kind of random!)
Well intentioned,
HS
I actually don’t need a therapist, it’s just the game I need to play right now for welfare (not much longer!). My session was great. I explained that I understood that she was only able to help me only in what she was trained for or had personal experience in. I told her that I knew my chronic depression was directly linked to not being able to talk about my spiritual experiences. I told her that I had gone to a Shaman this month, as I just really needed to express all that had happened to me over the last 5 years – I didn’t need to have it validated (even though it was and that was great), but I needed to express it all without being judged and ridiculed and labeled. Well, she was like a kid in a candy shop at that point – her eyes lit up and she wanted to know more about my Shaman visit. I also explained my theory that people will be having their right brain activated and will be going to therapists looking for help in their spiritual awakening. I told her about the therapist that recently confirmed this with me in a blog. Conclusion – she told me that I had planted a seed today (Yay Ceres!!). In the spirit of Ceres, I’m sure I left her with much food for thought.
Huffy: It would be good to go to your doctor at least to get a blood test to look at your hormones – this will confirm menopause for you. I just went through this last year – we had a doctor shortage and it took me 9 months to find one to have it confirmed, and it made a world of difference just knowing. This is really why I’m on welfare, I couldn’t imagine being able to work because when the tiredness hits, it hits hard – I could just lie down where I’m standing and sleep. Black Cohosh is good, but there are certain ailments it doesn’t mix with. I assumed menopause would begin when I had my exact Chiron return (6 Pisces). It actually began when Chiron entered Pisces, crawled to 5 degrees, retrograded back to 0. The pressure lifted when it hit exact. I had never been one to nap before, but sometimes it was 3 a day – my entire sleep schedule was screwed but I just went with it – surrender.
I see that PM Harper is using his thugs to go after David Suzuki.
I’ve been listening to the mystery of my gut in a big way, which is satisfying, frustrating, and enlightening. I read an interesting article the other day about banana cultivation- and how some people developed allergies when the Cavendish banana variety replaced the Gros Michel in the 50’s/60’s. The seeds and cultivars we consume do make a difference as well! All wheat is not the same, etc.
I have a question that isn’t food related, although it certainly has to do with nourishment: I am curious if anyone at Planet Waves has been looking at the Vatican smackdown of Catholic nuns that’s happening? Might this be related to Sun/Ceres? The public announcement of an investigation of LCWR was announced at “around noon” on April 18th from the Conference of US Bishops in Washington, DC.
Peace-from an astrology following, sex-positive Catholic (yes we do exist-although some wish we didn’t!) XO
well, i have heard back from my contact at the market, who says he has forwarded my message on to their kitchen, and that they are following up with the butter-makers, too.
paola, thanks for the additional info — as far as i understand, my friend has not had a problem as long as she bakes using a different butter. so i’m not sure if it’s a milk thing or not for her. i may ask her.
Ceres might rule food but for me it is ruling my stomach of late and how it feels. I eat very non-additive foods (organic when I can and never processed of any kind) but since Sunday, I have had stomach issues. First it felt like an ulcer; I got that feeling better (cabbage, garlic and turmeric water several times a day) but yesterday I felt tired and nauseated in the morning but not after I slept. Today I feel tired and sleepy and my stomach feels a bit shakey. Don’t know what the problem is but I am hoping it goes away soon.
Huffy, that means your Chiron return is coming up in the next couple of years.
Maeve: I agree; transpersonal therapists are a lot more willing to entertain things (without judgment) that most mainstream ones would not.
Hi Starrynight! I turned 50 last July. I’m a cancerian with natal Mars in Virgo, Chiron in Pisces, Venus in Gemini – so think the heat’s really being turned up, with Pluto and friends too! Lots of luck with your journey my dear. I know those dark woods well – hang on in there, and keep us posted.
Thanks for the hugs, dear Sarah!
Wondering if the food sensitivity that you are experiencing with this butter might be something in the milk it`s self ?
Possibly the cows are being fed something cruddy, like Monsanto GMO corn ?
(((((((Huffy, vickiabe)))))))
MandyM – Agreed, there are some therapists who will write you off, if not write you a prescription; and there are some who don’t. Personally (and I write with full bias) transpersonal analysts tend to take such things more in their stride. 🙂
Hey Huffy, how old are you? As I approach my second Saturn return in October, I find The
I find myself very deep in the dark woods.
Amanda –
I understand about your friend.
Regarding butter/milk, I am an expert having this issue myself! Butter does absolutely stand for ‘milk’ from a ‘food intolerances’ point of view. Well, this is what doctor told me.
If you are intolerant to yeast, you’ll have to pay attention to cheese, and not to milk and butter, but if you are intolerant to milk – milk, butter and cheese. Sorry…
Aww. Seems like I lost a comment in the ether of the internets.
What I was saying though, was…
Amanda – I can’t do cow dairy (and only small amounts of dry cheese of other dairy), but I can tolerate butter just fine. Something about the consistency is different for me. It’s not always fabulous, but generally much better for me than any fake butters.
Amanda – I can’t do cow dairy, with the exception of butter. Don’t really know what the difference is, but I can tolerate butter almost with no problem.
Slightly related, people with dairy issues who can’t quite do butter can often do ghee, because all of the milk proteins have been rendered out.
Also, a lot of my issues have to do with the consistency of something. Even if I go to goat milk, I certainly can’t drink a glass of milk, or anything more than a sip. I can’t do yogurt, I can’t do creamy cheeses. But dry cheese, like a sheep’s milk romano or lovely manchego, I can do those (in moderate amounts). Basically, if it’s something that will make you all goopy and mucusy if you’re sick with a headcold, that’s what I have to avoid. Like sour cream? That’s just all kinds of bad. Caveat – when I first went off dairy, _anything_ set me off. Didn’t matter from whence it came, or in what form. Even baked goods.
paola — i understand your point, but my friend says she does not react this way when she bakes with another butter.
and i’m not sure if butter ends up with enough “milk” still in it to count as “dairy” — it’s mainly fat. kind of like how olive oil isn’t a “vegetable.” but i’d have to do a little research to know for sure what the final content breakdown is for butter.
Speaking of butter and Monsanto….I had a Ceres moment recently researching a grant benefactor for a Michigan farm that offers internships in sustainable land use and artisan old world crafts.( I visited the farm last summer and was impressed by the array of workshops and opportunities.) Their recent newsletter detailed great news of securing a 3 year grant from Land o Lakes butter. I looked into Land O’ Lakes because those national brands seem to always get entangled with Big Pharma or Chemical conglomerates or something. Land O’ Lakes is the owner of a company called Forage genetics that is partnered with Monsanto in the development GM alfalfa which will obliterate the organic dairy industry. I try to stay informed regarding food issues and I’m finding multi-tentacled liasons that often lead back to Monsanto. Land o’ Lakes basically gives out grants to “greenwash” their uglier practises. Secrets, indeed.
My neighbor has a horse farm and relies on his fields of alfalfa…With the research I have done into the subject, there will be no way to differentiate true alfalfa from GM, it will eventually intermix and all fields will become infected and it’ll seep into the food chain on a wide scale.
… I feel like here in the midwest I am at ground zero for Ceres moments. I am in the belly of the beast. Thanks for this article Amanda, it’s food for thought…and action.
The bread I buy for myself is a brand name whole grain, has no HFCS (sugar, molasses and honey) and costs in excess of $3 a loaf at the grocery anywhere. A recent trip to the store showed that loaves of spongy soft, white bread were 88 cents a loaf. Which do you think a young family with limited resources is going to be buying for all those PB&J or grilled cheese sandwiches? No, I don’t have a loaf of the white bread handy to check the label.
I found some good research on the butter “natural flavoring” thing.
http://www.comfytummy.com/2010/02/02/natural-flavorings-in-butter/
http://www.mothering.com/community/t/1040458/why-is-natural-flavoring-in-butter
http://www.challengedairy.com/tips-and-techniques/what-is-the-natural-flavoring-thats-added-to-challenge-butter
Seems to be a consensus that it’s some sort of fermenting distillate added to the cream to create more buttery/something flavors.
MandyM – I’m looking into therapy for the first time ever. My husband thinks I should just pick someone out of the insurance list and go to them, and then go see a specialist (sexual issues) if I need to. I have a referral for said specialist(s!), and would much rather go to them, ’cause they’ve been vetted by someone I trust. I am trying to be patient and explain to him that I feel ultra vulnerable as it is. If I bring up parts of me that aren’t mainstream but that are normal to me and functioning well, I don’t want someone telling me I’m some sort of freaky sinner (in the bad way) and crushing me. It’s hard enough as it is to even talk to someone and open up. If they up and tell me I’m going to burn in the fiery pits of somewhere, it’s gonna take me some Serious Effort to even think about going to see someone else. And I do certainly have enough non-mainstream stuff in my life that any average, vanilla person would balk at. Plus, with my dad being cuckoo, I _know_ that there are far too many psychiatrist-types who aren’t worth the paper their credentials are printed on.
Good luck finding the right person or thread you need for good therapy-ing. 🙂
Make that “feeding” rendered sick cows to healthy ones. I am running sans coffee this morning.
How apropos. Just this morning the BBC news said that a dairy cow in California was found to have Mad Cow disease. So far, it has been found that the prions which confer mad Cow don’t show up in milk. The newscaster in California played the whole thing down but what it really means is that American ranchers and farmers ARE STILL feeling rendered sick cows to healthy cows. They LIED (no surprise there) about that.
Burning River – that’s exactly what I was going to post, when I read the title of this post. I’d just scanned over it whilst fiddling with my phone, waking up. Thanks for that. Now I can get back to getting ready for work. _Then_ I’ll have time to process the rest of this post and comment. ‘Cause I sure do gots some comments.
“If I’m going to judge what people are eating, I have to take into account the limited access they have, economy, class, cultural identity… “; Maria – Jamie Oliver, celebrity chef, and working class lad from Essex, UK, is doing his bit to try and change that both in Britain and the US.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIwrV5e6fMY
Good for you, Amanda! It’s a good fight, but a hard one. I’m not sure why it is so hard to know exactly what we are putting in our bodies. (Yes, gwind, you are right. Money.)
Google led to this: The definition of natural flavor under the Code of Federal Regulations is: “the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional” (21CFR101.22). In other words, it could include beef by-products, but not necessarily. Any other added flavor therefore is artificial. (For the record, any monosodium glutamate, or MSG, used to flavor food must be declared on the label as such). Both artificial and natural flavors are made by “flavorists” in a laboratory by blending either “natural” chemicals or “synthetic” chemicals to create flavorings.
Hmmm . . . doesn’t seem like that natural of a process for natural flavouring, does it?
I get to have a visit with my welfare-paid-mental-emotional-trained therapist to continue the conversation that I began last month which was regarding the fact that just because I have direct experience of the Divine and can astral travel etc., does not mean I am a schizophrenic lunatic.
I spoke about this on another blog – I mentioned that I knew with Neptune going into Pisces people’s right side of the brain would be activated and they would be going to therapists/doctors looking for help. I mentioned that I found it very sad that they would be labelled and most likely given drugs to deal with it – until, of course, the therapists themselves started having these experiences. Even knowing this, I was surprised when a therapist replied to my comment that this is already happening in her environment.
Funny enough, when I first mentioned this to my new doctor (who I like very much), she immediately picked up the phone to arrange counseling for me, all the while a picture of Ganesh was above my head (she is East Indian). She prays to an elephant headed God, but there is something wrong with me. I wonder what she would think if I told her that I have met Lord Shiva. Life is too funny sometimes.
I have the Sun squaring my natal Saturn today. When the student is ready, the teacher appears (and vice versa).
Well done Amanda! I can hardly wait to find out what the secret ingredient is.
All that, nutshelled: food’s become a class signifier and a source for moral judgment, and aren’t we lucky to be that food-secure that that can happen. If I’m going to judge what people are eating, I have to take into account the limited access they have, economy, class, cultural identity… This is why the “how could They eat that?!?” approach to changing our foodways so often fails.
I used to tell parents before kids worked or played in the garden: anyone can be allergic to anything at any time. The butter ingredient may be as simple as carotene, but if you’re sensitive, you’re gonna react. Allergies and sensitivities are not a lack of character or backbone, a bid for attention, or a need to be special, but I’ve heard people discount them as all of the above and more. Some sensitivities–gluten for instance–take barely a molecule to set it off. As someone who could eat anything but has the luxury of being able to commit to buying and serving good, safe, helpful food to people she loves, I get angry when I read the “blue liquid shopping cart” kind of remarks. I’m sorry, but I do. That woman is likely fighting hard just to get time to pee. She’s also fighting a food and advertising system that’s set up to support any number of billionaires around the world. I can’t change anything if I discount those realities and don’t see people caught in that situation clearly. And I am not above stopping at a 7-11 for a sweet tea and doritoes when I’m harried and hormonal. There but for the grace etc.!
You go Amanda! I get so discouraged reading labels and I am a label reader. I am pretty much disgusted by packaged foods. It seems the person in front of me in the checkout line, has three kids hanging on a cart full of puffed up something, bottles of blue juice, and not a vegetable in sight. I find this perplexing! [I eat my share of junk, but don’t these people ever wonder what they are feeding their kids?]
As I have written before, why put anything in my tuna but water? Why does my fresh celery, organic or not, taste like a salt lick? Why does a bottle of cocktail sauce have the #1 ingredient listed as high fructose corn syrup with over 1000 mg of salt per serving to boot?
I long for the days of my grandmother’s garden when food tasted like real food. Carrots had flavor. A beet had six times the nutrients…
The man that got mass media focused on the pink slime issue is my hero. We need more people like him to get the average person involved. Why do we allow our government to not govern things like our food? MONEY. Follow the money.
Ehm… I don’t know anything about the intolerances of you friend, of course, but it’s far more likely that one is intolerant to just *butter* (that is to say milk) than to the ‘natural flavoring’…
((((HUGS))))vickiabe… and strength. I feel you, and in my situation there would never be agreeance. Stealth has been my word of the year-and when that time comes where things that are important to me are safe- and I can support myself – then I can make my quiet decision. But I might be a widow by then, because, he is his own worst enemy and is on an extremely destructive path. Good luck- you’re worth it. <3
This is really resonant with what is going on in my life at the moment. I am leaving a marriage of 11 years with a verbally abusive husband. I have been trying to leave for a long time and only now find I have the strength to do so. But the point is that even though we have agreed to part and also the terms of our parting, he still has the ability to make me feel ill. He is very manipulative and sometimes I feel so confused and out of touch with myself that I find it hard to think clearly. He seems on the surface to be perfectly ok with everything but inside there is this evil strain that is trying to destroy me. The mere subtlety of this is insanity.
Mercury square Pluto, methinks…Pluto takes no prisoners.
Hey guys, all this call to action. Have been in a pretty deep dark place these days that I can’t seem to get out of. And can’t see a way out of the situation I’m in. But I’ve been here before and I’ll see it through.
Hi Amanda, Well Sun-Ceres brought another Monsanto travesty to my attention tonight and I am posting here a link to a blog that is featuring a truthout article by Mark Karlin that I will let speak for itself.
http://windswhisperer.blogspot.com/2012/04/monsanto-buys-beelogic-advocate-and.html
Good luck and may you find out all about that “natural” flavoring. I cannot wait to hear what is now passing as natural as if butter needed anything more than its own flavor. The “natural” flavor additives that I have heard of have addictive properties because they make the flavor more intense than “natural” and thereby stir up the craving for that intensity.
Thanks for another great article.