I did something last night that’s uncharacteristic of me; I wrote to Maine’s federal legislators. That’s right, I sent carefully considered and carefully worded emails to Senators Snowe and Collins, and to Representatives Chellie Pingree and Mike Michaud. I wrote about my concern over the rising fuel and oil prices and its impact on the common people who don’t have the disposable dollars to invest in commodity and futures trading. I’ m not sure what I expected and I didn’t ask for a reply, but Sen. Collins and Rep. Pingree both let me know they had received my communication. Sen. Snowe sent me a good response, explaining her position and initiatives to address runaway energy costs, which was nice of her, but I can’t help but feel my concerns, although likely similar to those of thousands of people across Maine and many more thousands across the country are just a few more drops in a seemingly bottomless bucket.
Ever wonder what our elected officials think of us engaging in exercising our right to let them know how we feel about their actions? I do, and often. When I was in the news business, I often found out how they felt about what I thought, and occasionally, the stories and articles I wrote had an impact that resulted in positive change. Now I’m not so sure that the people are ever heard amidst the clamor of multinational corporations and lobbyists advancing their own causes. But I thought it might be worth the effort, and today when I drove into Presque Isle to pick up my gown for graduation tomorrow, I felt the rightness of my decision.
In Caribou, about ten miles north of Presque Isle, which is Aroostook’s biggest city, the gas prices still hovered around $4.20 a gallon, but at one station in Presque Isle, they had somehow miraculously dropped from the high on $4.21 a gallon on Wednesday when I was last in town to $4.11 a gallon. While I should have been delighted, it made me wonder just how much of what we spend on petroleum-based energy actually has to do with supply and demand or production levels, and how much has to do with simple greed. That’s not to imply that I think the gas station owners are price gouging. Rather, I think that those people with the cash to gamble see oil as a sort of roulette table. Put enough cash on the table and eventually the number’s going to come up.
That’s fine if you’ve got money to burn, but what about those who don’t? What about seniors who have to decide whether to buy food, prescriptions, or oil to heat their homes. What about the students at the college where I teach who were laid off almost three years ago because of risky behavior by big financial investment firms and banks? Some of them have struggled to come up with the money for gas to drive to school to attend classes to acquire the skills that they need to try to find a new job to support their families. Who is looking out for them, and why do they have to b held hostage to the greed of others. Money is nice to have, don’t get me wrong, but is it right for others to profit extravagantly on the backs of others? I think not. Maybe what we should all do is take a minute and send messages to our federal officials letting them know that bad behavior, that benefiting from someone else’s misery is just not acceptable.
When we moved here to the wilds of Aroostook, we made the decision to live more deliberately. We grow about 60 percent of our own food, and what we can’t grow we try to buy locally. All told, almost 80 percent of that food comes from within five miles of our home. And by buying locally, we eat healthier and we support others who are trying to eke out a living. We also cut wood from our land and burn it for heat so we have a buffer from rising prices, and we drive a Prius and a small pickup truck, not one of those big, chest-thumping gas guzzlers, but just enough for hauling straw and other thing we need for the farm and our life. It would be nice if everyone saw their life through this kind of lens.
However, that’s not the American way, or at least we don’t seem to believe it is the American way, and so seniors may continue to go cold or hungry, and students may not be able to get to school, and parents may not be able to feed their families. Seems a little feudal to me, but as one commentator for WCSH in Portland used to say, that’s our opinion; we welcome yours. I’m going out to dig parsnips.
I love parsnips! They come out of the ground each spring, chilled from wintering over and so sweet they are almost beyond describing. Dig them early, though, before they start putting out new roots because once the grab on to the soil after a long winter sleeping, they are nearly impossible to pull out!.
One of my favorite ways to eat them is roasted with carrots. We’ve not taken to wintering carrots over yet, so they are a bit flaccid, verging on heading south. Maybe next year we’ll leave a crop in so that both the carrots and parsnips are crisp and cold and sweet. We buy Harris Model seed, which is available from Sustainable Seed, from whence this picture comes.
We buy Harris Model seed, which is available from Sustainable Seed, from whence this picture comes.
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Roasted Parsnips and Carrots 1 pound of parsnips, peeled and quartered then cut to 2 ½ – 3 inch lengths 1 pound carrots, prepared the same as for the parsnips. 5 teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil Salt and freshly ground pepper 1/3 cup low-sodium chicken stock (for vegetarian or vegan, use vegetable broth) 3 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened 4 teaspoons drained, bottled horseradish (Bruce makes his own each fall from the horseradish bed out back) 1/2 Tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley 1 garlic clove, minced. |
While you’re peeling and cutting and chopping and mincing the veggies, pre-heat the oven to 400°F. Put the carrots and parsnips in a large bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Add salt and pepper and toss until well coated. Now pour the whole shebang into a large roasting pan, with sides no more than 2 inches high. Add the broth, cover with aluminum foil and roast, stirring once or twice, until the carrots and parsnips are tender and the stock has evaporated or been absorbed, 20-45 minutes (depending on how tender the parsnips are to begin with). Check often so they don’t get too mushy.
Meanwhile, combine the softened butter with the horseradish, parsley, and garlic and season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove the roasted veggies to a serving dish and toss with horseradish butter and serve.
Yummy! I love this with roasted lamb or ham!
Serves 6.
