I think the new guy who came to the colony is great. _He_, at least has ideas and is getting them closer to their goal.
Long entry...
The religion thing. I think they have every place to not attend - spirituality is a big thing, not something they should feel they should compromise for this experience. I've said it many times, and will say it many more - The _only_ thing any mortal knows for an absolute fact is that no mortal knows for a fact what is the absolute truth. Everyone may have his or her beliefs, but that doesn't mean you _know_ the truth - you simply believe and have faith in one theory. This is what I believe, and I think there is some value in acknowledging this.
Killing the lamb. Hard to watch, it brought tears to my eyes, but if anyone has a right to eat that meat, it is the people who could kill and clean it. If everyone had to do this themselves (properly), they'd be able to think about what they were doing, and it's importance. I was glad to see them slaughter the animal as painlessly, quickly, and humanely possible. I honestly don't think I could do this myself (ok, I like to think I could handle fowl), and probably shouldn't be eating meat guilt free. It's too easy to not think about how these animals are treated and slaughtered on the grand scale, and (I feel) everyone should be well aware of it before making the choice to purchase it, including me.
Speaking of which, dinner tonight -
Stir-fry: Beef, snap peas, carrots, onions, water chestnuts, & orange peppers, with a coconut-curry sauce. I did forget to add the red pepper flakes to the sauce, and you could tell - needed more "kick". Recipe from Cook's Illustrated - The Quick Recipe book to be exact.
I received my Penzey's order today, and the first thing I tried was the Hot Chocolate Mix. It is wonderful, as good as making it from "scratch" (cocoa, sugar, vanilla, milk), and faster. This is a mix you add to milk - I'm yet to find a mix w/water type that is worth anything. (I suspect it doesn't exist.)
