Keep it Simple

I was setting up for our church's Christmas pageant on Saturday, and I noted to one of my fellow camels that the ladder we were using was made in America. It was a Werner brand, though there are others made in the USA...Little Giant, for example. Good products.

The camel's comment back to me was that the ladder must be really old...because *nothing* is made in America any more.

And I get his sentiment, but it was nice to have an opportunity to tell him otherwise.

There's a LOT of good stuff made here...from shoes and boots to kitchen appliances to toothbrushes to lawn implements (Toro).

So I think I'll give you an over-generalization: We can still buy things we *need* made in the USA. But the things we *want* are made somewhere else. What do we need?

Towels, linens, clothing, shoes, real tools (hammers, screw drivers, wrenches, tape measures, leatherman, mag-lites), kitchen utensils, appliances, food, carpet, paint, 2x4's, books and cars...all made in America and all (with the possible exception of the cars) made with really good quality.

Things we want? iphones, xboxes, Wii consoles, iPods (do you see a pattern here?), flat-screen TV's and American Girl Dolls (believe it or not) are all made somewhere else.

So why don't we keep it simple and just get the stuff we need? Why complicate things with the things we don't need?

The mantra "keep it simple" helps you keep it local.

Food and Music

So, 7 years in the Navy, traveling to 34 different countries, I noted something.

The two things I used to seek out in every country...food and music.

There are a number of things that are a good measure of a nation's culture: clothing, religion, architecture. But the two immediate things that always stood out for me were food and music.

I always tried to sample the local food and music.

A couple of things you can find locally on a pretty regular basis are food and music. We do a pretty good job at that.

But be careful. If other people measure our culture by food and music, we should make sure they're not judging us by McDonald's and Hanna Montana.

But then who would it be? What is more quintissentially American than cheeseburgers and Rock and Roll?

How about some good local grass-fed steak, and a night of listening to some great local live music?

What's better than a summer picnic with sweet corn, watermelon and John Phillips Sousa!

Sleep well, Lucky dog.

Went shopping at PETCO the other day, for an algae eater for my wife's preschool's aquarium.

Don't know where the fish was made. My guess is here in the USA.

But here's the cool thing. 40 kinds of dog beds in the store. I found, and purchased, 1 of 4 in the store made in the USA. It's a PETCO brand, so I can't tell you who made it, but it looks to be pretty sturdy. Lucky dog hasn't chewed it up yet.

Oliver Hardy and Mr. Laurel

That would be Stanley, as in Stanley tools.

I recently bought a set of screwdrivers made by Stanley, and made in the USA.

Now...I *think* the electric tools are made in China, but the good ol' gotta-have-a-strong-grip tools are still made here.

4 Sticks

Cleaning up a little the other day, I found my Vic Firth drum sticks. Made in America.

Pound 'em, Bonzo.

In a world of Bikes gone bad...

Most bikes you find out there are made in China. Even American companies (Trek, Giant, Diamondback) are making bikes overseas.

There are some high end bicycles made in the US, though I can't swear as to the origin of their components.

I'm encouraged to find a number of biking accessories, such as the Lone Peak Pannier series that are made in the USA.

See www.lonepeakpacks.com

I'll continue to look for more, but I can tell you that Campmor (www.campmor.com) sells a children's reflective vest that's good for biking, running or hiking...made in the USA

Happy Riding!

For Preserving...

How's this for Made in America? I'm sitting in my office with 4 cases (48 total) of Ball Mason Jars.

All made in the USA.

And all usually filled with things made in the USA, often things made in our own back yard.

At home I have more cases of these things, filled with honey, maple syrup, apple sauce, apple jelly, strawberry jelly, pasta sauce, salsa, pickled peppers.

The label on the case says, "Mason Jars for Preserving."

I think that speaks volumes. For preserving home-grown foods. For preserving a way of life. For preserving a little bit of Americana.

Thanks, Ball, for making these jars in the USA!