It’s now been more than a month since this oil rig exploded, killing 11 people and in my mind demonstrating clearly that even the best minds in energy science do not have the equipment or plan in place for responding to the worst-case scenarios in deep-water drilling.

We’re still having a hard time keeping coal mining safe, and that’s been going on for decades. I’m personally shocked that the government would provide permits for drilling in an area where even the government doesn’t have adequate underwater vehicles. It’s apparently just too darn deep.

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On Hardball with Chris Matthews, I saw Sylvia Earle of National Geographic say,

We (the USA) haven‘t made the investment to have a garage filled with submarines, a garage filled with remotely-operated systems, (nor in) the talent to be able to go down independently of industry and respond. (video above)

In other words, the oil industry HAS to fix it because they are the only ones that HAVE THE TOOLS.

That is petrifying.

I am furious because I feel so helpless. I have worked hard to live an environmentally friendly life. But a worse case scenario in the Gulf could potentially ruin my visit to a North Carolina beach. Do you see how huge this thing is? This is right in our backyard, DC. Not cool.

The truth is that together we could have prevented this, and we can prevent another incident like this if we all do our part to get out of the oil slick. Go green. Ask for alternative energies. A wind farm will never cause problems like this. Solar panels don’t even have to change the landscape of your neighborhood. Recycle. Buy from farmers’ markets. Use public transportation. Every little bit helps.

Above all, write your Representative and Senator in Congress and let them know that offshore drilling needs to stop now.

I am no talented chef. Just ask my husband.

He didn’t marry me for my cooking, he married me because I was fun and perhaps a little dangerous. I am getting less dangerous, but for some reason I am cooking more. Well, that can be dangerous at times. Anyway, we don’t eat meat in our house. I eat fish occasionally when we’re out. (They call me a pescetarian.)

But we do like to eat, and we aren’t vegans. We love cheese and we like a plate that looks full, with a nice presentation. I really like Top Chef and Gordon Ramsay. We like Indian food and Mexican food and Chinese and Japanese food — I LOVE Japanese food. But it’s hard to find really good quick recipes for vegetarians.

So, I’m very grateful for the number of faux meat products that have come out over the past couple of decades. Things have gotten easier. Now I can take a normal omnivorous recipe and swap out ‘chicken’ or ‘beef’ in the directions and voila, I’ve got real food, perhaps a favorite family flavor like ‘beef’ stroganoff, for me and my man, and there’s no flesh on the plate.

Cooking times definitely need to be adjusted — these items are fairly ready to eat out of the package — and extra seasoning does need to take place. But these mean that we can enjoy a variety of textures besides block tofu, and the convenience that the rest of our society enjoys in the freezer section. Plus, we can enjoy cookouts like the rest of our friends when summer comes around. (Tofu blocks do NOT grill well.)

All that said, here are my top ten meatless convenience foods. I hope this is helpful to some of you just venturing into vegetarian life, or into Meatless Mondays. It’s a great healthy way to live.

1. Morningstar Farms breakfast sausage
2. Morningstar Farms bacon
3. Yves Veggie Cuisine hot dogs
4. Morningstar Farms Grillers Prime – our favorite veggie burger
5. Quorn Chik’n cutlets – to do with as you please
6. Lightlife Smart Ground (for tacos!)
7. Seitan – for stir fry or stroganoff
8. Baked tofu – firmer, more flavorful than the white blocks
9. Morningstar Farms Sausage Style recipe crumbles – great for casseroles & lasagna
10. Boca Chik’n patties – for a quick sandwich or as chicken parmesan

We lost some big names in entertainment this year, I just wanted the chance to say one last goodbye to some of my favorites.

• Actor Patrick Swayze, 57 – I really enjoyed Dirty Dancing and many more of his movies.
• Director John Hughes, 59 – His films were some of the first that I rented from video stores and watched over and over again.
• Actress Farrah Fawcett, 62 – What a courageous documentary she made at the end of her life.
• Actor Dom DeLuise, 75 – Always made me laugh.
• Actor Ricardo Montalban, 88 – I still want to visit Fantasy Island.
• George Michael, sports broadcaster, 70 – I watched his ‘Sports Machine’ show for years in DC.
• Vic Chesnutt, singer/songwriter, 45 – Just an amazing talent.
• Actress Brittany Murphy, 32 – I loved her voice work for King of the Hill.
• Ed McMahon, 86 – I’ll remember him from Star Search, way before American Idol.
• Pitchman Billy Mays, 50 – He could sell me the shoes on my feet, what a guy.
• Walter Cronkite, 92 – Sad to see him go, but that’s the way it is.

There were many more notable deaths, as The New York Times notes in their annual review.