Fresh World supermarket--a fresh concept (aka eatin' good in the 'hood)?

It's still a relatively new store, this Fresh World market. A friend said a mutual friend comes here weekly to get stuff; I said I heard about it from someone else, which brought on a trip to this market on Marlboro Pike (in a former Giant supermarket), a spacious experiment of a store. Experiment because I don't know of any other international food store of this size in Prince George's County, and certainly not inside the Beltway, and not providing such a variety of foods, at reasonable, often less expensive than elsewhere. Which is saying something, considering there's an Aldi's in the next parking lot!

One (gawking) trip turned into another, and another. When you hear that Asians tend to eat more fruits and vegetables than Americans, you get visual confirmation merely from stalking the produce section, with its array of both exotic and familiar edibles, often at nice prices:

The produce sale prices here are cheaper than Shopper's--and the regular prices, too!

More fresh herbs for the same price as other grocery stores (even if the herb's name is sometimes misspelled).

Some of the wide variety of Asian vegetables, especially greens such as yu choy.

Korean cabbage, large and flat, next to "regular" cabbage, both at a great price. There's also lots of packaged tofu at inexpensive prices.

On the left is lemongrass, and on the right is fresh turmeric--how often do you find that? (Of course, I had to get some turmeric.)

Even frozen durian--which is not for the faint of heart! (Not that I've personally tried fresh or frozen durian, but made the mistake of buying (but not trying) durian-flavored wafer cookies; couldn't eat them because of the stench that flew out when I cracked open the wrapping. And this was a dried, processed durian product!) No way I'd try a fresh or frozen durian, as it would make me faint outright from the smell.

And that's just the produce section! Don't get me started on my favorite section, the tea area (and its reasonable prices for good-quality ordinary green tea):

There is also a wide variety of Thai tea, as well as more tea and coffee than you can shake a stick at. Oh, and there are aisles of Jamaican/Indian food, as well as Latin American/Peruvian food, Japanese and Korean noodles, Asian snacks and desserts, as well as American breakfast cereal, sundries, Mexican cheeses and beverages, seafood (which was larger than the meat section), and the wonders of the frozen food aisles. There's also a pasta section, which even includes whole grain pastas, as well as pizza and spaghetti sauce, as well as breads (with a focus on Latin American breads and pastries), with a smattering of Filipino breads. Hey, where'd the yummy Filipino purple yam bread go?

Not sure if they're pictured here, but I enjoyed the black sesame frozen pops--tempted to try varieties like the taro and jackfruit flavors shown above.

Now, you hear complaints about some international stores about the smell, especially from the seafood. There are occasional problems with that here, but as the store is fairly large (and relatively neat), you only notice it when you get close to the seafood section. Even Mom mentioned that other grocery stores had this problem at times, if the seafood's not also kept on ice.

With its wide variety of foodstuffs, and the diversity of clientele, as well as neighborhood people shopping, this store has potential to be an asset to its community. It's in a fitting locale, in the same shopping center as a large (and also reasonably priced) gym, the Capital Sports Complex, the former Run 'n' Shoot. Speaking of the nearby fitness center, seems that many of the fitness minded flock to this market. Hope that many more join them.

Election foolishness (isn't it always?) and more...

With all the election brouhaha, it's easy to forget that the employees of the company contracted to run the county bus service (known simply as The Bus) went on strike yesterday, according to the Washington Examiner. A brave move, I say, in these recessionary times, but, unlike many workers, they're in a union, so they have a bit more protection than other workers. Somewhat. The bad thing is that the possibility wasn't publicized ahead of time, so people using The Bus to get around the county (to polling places, perhaps?) are in a bind, and unsure which lines are not running.

Of course, polling places and the county courthouse aren't the only places The Bus runs near; there's also a stop near the outskirts of this place, where I got some early junk in the trunk:

That's right--pumpkin in mid-September, from Clagett Farm. (It was a gift from an acquaintance whose truck I was helping unload.)

However, the true junk around here doesn't emanate from the farm; it comes from the politicians. I'm not talking about their posturing on various issues (or the lack thereof), or the annoying robo-calls. No, they've added another level of nuisance to the campaign season this time around.

Once upon a time, almost all election signs looked like this (my favorite campaign sign this season):
Now, we have lots of campaign signs pumped up on steroids, blocking views of the street, traffic, etc.:


Ugh. Go away. This could, and should, become a campaign issue. After all, what happened to the "Gorgeous Prince George's" initiative?

Time to step it up...

Tonight's the night. Yes, the President is finally giving a speech outlining what his Administration plans to do regarding the Gulf oil spill cleanup, as well his plans for an energy policy.

It's about time. However, the President, and the government in general, can only do so much. We as individual citizens have to get serious about reducing energy consumption and resource waste. It's ridiculous for Limberger to attempt to blame the spill on "environmentalists," as the need to drill deep comes not from BP's caring about anyone's opinion, but rather the need to go (as all oil companies do) where the oil is.

What can I do, you say, to cut down the use of petroleum? Any number of things, which may be easier to implement in your life than you might imagine.

If you must drive a car, don't be a leadfoot. Seriously, again according to tests done by Edmonds, easing up on the accelerator alone can cause you to save, at minimum, 20 percent gas (and lives), no matter where you drive. For city drivers, there's still significant savings in easing up, as you're not stomping down on the brakes so often (or so hard); being easier on the brakes also saves petroleum, and reduces wear and tear on your vehicle (which is also composed of petroleum, in large measure). Please, drive the speed limit. (On the highway, drive 55). It's not a communist plot--the federal speed limit was passed, in fact, during the original oil crisis of the 1970s, to save gas. Oh, and you're not saving that much time when you speed, weaving in and out of lanes, etc., particularly when you're not driving on the highway.

We've all heard the saying, "reduce, reuse, recycle," which has always struck me as an updated version of the old saying, "waste not, want not."

To reduce means to look at whether we need to buy something in the first place, whether we'll actually use what we buy. We also need to look at product packaging, as some packaging is excessive, and other packaging is easily reusable. For instance, I've kept certain candy and cosmetic tins, glass jars, and the like and reused them, to use for office products (e.g., pen and pencil holders) and other uses. Sometimes that's the reason I've bought certain mints, because I could see that I'd be able to reuse them (in addition to the delicious candy, of course).

Look at what you use most often--can you use less of it? Be it paper, laundry detergent, or something else, chances are you use way more of it than you need. For instance, with laundry detergent, for one load, you don't need to use the entire scoop, only up to the first fill line. You might find that using this reduced amount not only saves money, but gets your clothes cleaner. I have found this to be the case when doing laundry, particularly for my dark clothes.

Perhaps the last part, to recycle, is not done as often as possible is that often, municipalities make it as difficult as possible to do so. Thankfully, in my part of Prince George's County, officials have made it easy to recycle, ever since single-stream recycling has been implemented (as I mentioned in an earlier post, of Jan. 7, 2009). If you live in PG and don't have single-stream recycling yet, it will be coming to your neighborhood sometime this year. If you don't live in Prince George's County and don't have single stream recycling, contact your local public works and ask why it hasn't implemented single-stream recycling; perhaps contact P.G. County yourself and ask how it came to be put in place. Remember, plastic is made from petroleum, so when it's recycled to make new products, less petroleum overall is used in the process.

Of course, it makes sense to complete the circle, and purchase recycled goods, when you need to buy things. It's almost too easy to buy 100% recycled paper for writing or printing/copying, and the quality is the same. Actually, someone mentioned to me that the 100% recycled copy paper by Staples is better in quality than the 30% recycled version, that it was more trouble free with office equipment. If you think you can't swing the price of the recycled product, and you have a Staples rewards card, bring in your used inkjet cartridge or toner cartridge for recycling next time you go shopping there, and soon enough, you'll be getting coupons for $3, $5, $6, or more off your next purchase. Easy. Without a button.

Green, and red all over...

I finally decided to call the county and order a recycling bin, so that I could have the satisfaction of not contributing so much to the landfill, etc. Thankfully, the container didn't take long to arrive, about a week. However, I was in for a nasty surprise; when I called to find out where the paper that residents recycle goes, not only did the county employee not know, she told me that the only paper that could be recycled were newspapers, glossy magazines, and telephone books. What?!? Of course, I let her know how ridiculous that situation was, as I purchase recycled office paper, and much of the paper that needs to be recycled is office paper. She countered that the county does not have the capacity to process office paper! (One good thing, the county does also recycle plastic, glass, and metal containers, so I suppose I shouldn't grouse too much.)

However, that incapacity leads me to a greater frustration. A number of my colleagues are as disgusted as I am with the waste generated by our office, and similar offices, so I decided to look into recycling options. Now, why did I do that? Every jurisdiction makes recycling difficult for businesses and nonprofits, which would seem to make it impossible for them to reach their recycling goals. For instance, if Prince George's County is unable to recycle office paper from residences because it lacks the capacity, then the county is not equipped to process this material from businesses and nonprofits, which, if anything, generate as much or more of this type of material than residences!

Prince George's County, MD is far from the only jurisdiction that makes it impractical for businesses and nonprofits to recycle. Even progressive Montgomery County, MD requires that interested establishments contact a waste hauler to pick up their recyclables (making recycling an additional expense, on top of fees for having regular trash hauled), and submit an annual report. (More bureaucracy!) Confusingly, all jurisdictions in the Washington area have similar requirements for businesses and nonprofits that wish to recycle, while making it practically effortless for residents to recycle (e.g., supplying free recycling bins, free pickup of recyclables, etc.).

One might think that Washington, DC itself would be keen to motivate busineses and nonprofits to recycle, considering that it's in even more dire landfill straits than its neighbors (and, according to a city employee, may soon be losing a site, as one is in the process of being sold), but you'd be wrong. A business or nonprofit can either go through the dog and pony show of contacting a hauler, or become a "self-hauler" and obtain a sticker so that your business/institution can haul its own recyclables to the recycler. (You also get to pay $24 annually for this privilege!) Argggggghhhh!

* * * ** * * *

On a brighter green note, the recent gorgeous weather prompted me to take a nice long stroll to the Washington Deli for pizza. This eatery boasts of having "Long Island" style pizza. Well, whether the pizza is authentic New York-style or not, it's some mighty tasty pie! I had the soy cheese variety one day, which came with various toppings and had a nicely charred, smoky crust. Yum! The next day, I tried the white pizza, which was a tad salty, but was a flavorful combination, nonetheless. The crusts are nice and thin, and the sauce well seasoned; apparently, many people agree, judging by the crowds there! When the weather becomes pleasant on a regular basis, I may try one of its various vegetarian sandwiches, that is, if I can tear myself away from the pizza (which may be a challenge, for when you find a place in DC that serves good pizza, you keep going back for more).

This place seems to put green principles into practice, if only to save dough, so to speak. (Perhaps the fact that the headquarters for the Humane Society of the United States is nearby is also influential in this regard.) For instance, the deli seems to eschew excessive packaging and containers, as everyone's pizza is served in thin pizza boxes, even customers who eat at the tables outside. Also absent are those ridiculous napkin holders; in fact, napkins and other accoutrements are kept in flat containers, which may not please the germ-phobic. However, I didn't notice any tiny beasties anywhere in the vicinity of the place--perhaps the natural spiciness of the food kept insects away. (This notion is not as wild as it sounds, as many natural insect repellant formulas contain garlic and chili pepper, or some combination thereof, as people seem to be the only creatures that consume hot peppers, pickled or otherwise.)

* * * * * * * *

One productive way of re-framing a divisive issue--Thom Hartmann says that America's immigration dilemma is really an "illegal employer problem." To wit:

"Encouraging a rapid increase in the workforce by encouraging companies to hire non-citizens is one of the three most potent tools conservatives since Ronald Reagan have used to convert the American middle class into the American working poor. (The other two are destroying the governmental protections that keep labor unions viable, and ending tariffs while promoting trade deals like NAFTA/WTO/GATT that export manufacturing jobs.)

As David Ricardo pointed out with his "Iron Law of Labor" (published in his 1814 treatise "On Labor") when labor markets are tight, wages go up. When labor markets are awash in workers willing to work at the bottom of the pay scale, unskilled and semi-skilled wages overall will decrease to what Ricardo referred to as "subsistence" levels.

Two years later, in 1816, Ricardo pointed out in his "On Profits" that when the cost of labor goes down, the result usually isn't a decrease in product prices, but, instead, an increase in corporate and CEO profits..

Republicans understand this very, very well, although they never talk about it. Democrats seem not to have read Ricardo, although the average American gets it at a gut level."

'Nuff said.

Safety is as Safety Does...

Today's Washington Post [free reg. req'd] is full of articles and information about keeping your vehicle from being stolen. Although the series focuses on Prince George's County (Maryland), the same principles apply anywhere, as car theft is a nationwide problem (and an expensive one to boot). Consider joining a Watch Your Car program in your area, if practical. (Enrolling in such a program permits the police to stop your car, if it's seen on the road between the hours of 1 and 5 am [if you're not normally out during those times], when most auto thefts take place.)

Hope this helps keep your ride close to you.