Day 7 - First debates within

Last night Tom and I had an interesting debate. We both are disagreeing on how to proceed with our organic adventures. Tom feels that he does not want to sacrifice certain things - which in this debate it is salami. I have a problem with that because I feel it is not the original vision we both started with. I feel we can be flexible and adaptable (particularly when traveling or have absolutely no other options), but I do see a conflict with buying salami by choice when we decided not to eat meat, dairy and vegetables/fruits unless it is organic. Tom and I share a different view on this topic, but that's nothing new...since most of the time we don't agree on minor things - luckily we share the same opinion when it comes to major lifestyle attitudes.

Well, what do you think? If you adhere to an organic lifestyle  and support the message from the Food Inc. movie - would you stop buying salami that is not organic or would you say once in a while I am going to eat a food I enjoy?
It is a good question and both opinions are valid and a vital part of becoming an organic family. Raising questions and having debates will teach us more about us and in which direction we are heading.

On a different topic. We have been talking about getting chickens, but are still hesitant. Mainly because we don't know how much work it is, if we would be able to handle chickens and the costs that are involved with it. According to Boise Code "Boise municipal code allows chickens to be classified as pets rather than livestock when there are three or fewer hens"  We have the perfect space for them but would have to modify some things and build a coop. I don't know what to think.. I am not a farm girl, I don't really like more responsibility than I already have, what if we want to travel, and how much maintenance and cleaning up is required? But then again...fresh eggs from our own chicken...unbeatable. Tom is not down with it and we are still playing with the thought, but we need to do a lot more research and weigh out the pros & cons.

Here is an example I found on the internet how easy it can be

WISDOM OF THE DAY

If you are considering raising your own chicken and are not brave enough to kill you own chicken (which I would never be able to do) there is a local company who does that for you. Home Grown Poultry. They are located in New Plymouth (about 1 hr away from Boise). You can also purchase chickens there and get tons of interesting information.

Here are their charges:

Young Chicken  $3.75 per bird   Unbagged $.25 per bird deducted from your total. Your tote or container MUST meet USDA standards  

Mature Chicken  $3.75 per bird    Unbagged $.25 per bird deducted from your total. Your tote or container MUST meet USDA standards

"We slaughter and dress all types of poultry, including chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, chukars, pheasants, quail, and guineas. Our skilled and experienced staff can assure your birds are treated with respect and are humanely handled. At this time we only offer whole poultry. We expect to add cut-up services in the near future".

Her is an update on my gardening project and a recommendable local place to get organic vegetable plants from.
This weekend I visited our neighborhood plant store and was positively surprised that the local plants the owner sells are organic and cost less than the regular grocery store sells them for. I purchased organic lettuce and organic sweet basil. Both looked really good. If you are interested in checking out the store and supporting local plants/flowers (organic) please visit the store. Here is a coupon I found on their website which saves you $2.00 when you purchase something for  $10.00 or more. Click for link here. Coupons expires 6/30/11

 Native Son Plants
4101 Rose Hill, Boise
Mon - Sat  10 am - 6 pm
Sundays 11 - 4