Category — Marin

Can you imagine the Bay Area without Mount Tam, Half Moon Bay Beach, and Henry Coe? Well that’s what the Governor announced - a new proposal to eliminate state funding for our state park system – which will close more than 80% of the 279-unit state park system.  His proposal to cut $143 million from our state parks is 10 times worse than last year’s proposal.

What can you do?

1. Sign the petition from the California State Parks Foundation

2. Donate to the California State Parks Foundation, the only non profit dedicated to advocating for the California State park system.

3. Learn more about the issues and the California state budget.

4. Spread the word!

Last year, during this time, I realized I couldn’t handle the day to day tasks of a wedding while at work. So I made the wise choice of hiring a wedding planner. I looked for a green, environmental wedding planner, and I was able to find one!

I worked with Corina Beczner of Vibrant Events. I liked her style, her background in sustainability, and her ideas. She worked with me for several months before the big day in Half Moon Bay to concoct a green wedding. My wedding had so many green elements in it that it has been filmed by Bloomberg, along with other green wedding vendors like Brilliant Earth. More photos and ideas from my wedding to come!

California State and federal government officials plan to spray across the San Francisco Bay Area in order to eradicate the apple moth. According to a recent Chronicle article, “Hundreds of residents in Monterey and Santa Cruz counties, where pheromone pesticides were aerially applied late last year, have reported health symptoms, including shortness of breath, muscle aches and sore throats.”

Read more about these issues through a local non profit dedicated against the spraying called Stop The Spray. I signed the petition to stop the spray on Care2 which already contains over 14,000 signatures.

With summer in full force, check out the San Francisco Bay Area’s 90 farmers market according to the San Francisco Chronicle. The picture above shows organic carrots and other veggies being sold by Calderon Organic Farms of Hollister.

Here is a list of resources from the San Francisco Chronicle to find a farmers market.

• SFGate. www.sfgate.com/food/farmersmarkets. A list of Bay Area farmers’ markets.
• Planet Drum. www.planetdrum.org/gc_farmers_markets.htm. Information about farmers’ markets and local agriculture.
• Center for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture. www.cuesa.org. Information about seasonality and the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market.
• California Federation of Certified Farmers’ Markets. www.cafarmersmarkets.com/search. Information about markets throughout the state.
• KQED. www.kqed.org/topics/home/cooking/farmers-markets.jsp. A market guide. =
• The Green Gate. www.nrdc.org/greengate/guides/markets.asp. National Resources Defense Council’s Bay Area guide.

You may have heard of the two whales that swam all the way from the Pacific ocean via the San Francisco Bay into the Sacramento River delta. Now scientists and crews are on a mission to make sure the two wayward whales are heading back to healthier ocean water in the Pacific. The whales have made some progress returning towards the ocean. Below is a map from the San Francisco Chronicle which details the whales’ journey. Let’s hope for their safe return back into the ocean!

One of my friends from high school started a great food company, Hodo Soy Beanery. It’s an all organic, fresh, locally produced soy product company–from tofu, to soy milk, and special textures of soy that you typically can’t find at a market. They sell at farmers markets such as the Ferry Building in San Francisco, the Berkeley Farmers market, the Marin Farmers market and recently in Oakland and San Mateo. I’ve tried their tofu, soy milk and other products and it all tastes very fresh and light.

I recently started to watch KQED’s new series, QUEST. I love this show–it’s all about the Bay Area and how we are dealing with different environmental and science issues. It’s in high definition and you can download free videos of previous episodes on their website. Some of the ones that I like include: plug-in modified hybrid cars that carry 100mpg, a biodiesel road trip from LA to San Francisco, Earth Day in the Bay Area, green building, and Silicon Valley’s investments in green technology. If you have high definition, definitely check this out. Disclaimer: I am a KQED member, but this is still an interesting show to watch.

Straus Family Creamery, a small family run farm in Marin is hosting a tour through Marin Organic on October 5th at 1:30PM. Come see the cows that make milk, yogurt, ice cream and more.

Tucked into the hills overlooking Tomales Bay, this 660-acre family-run dairy is home to 270 happy Holstein and Jersey cows. The Straus family has been nationally recognized time and again for their pioneering efforts in sustainable farming and for the high quality of their products.

One look at the juicy green grasses and delicate wildflowers that eventually become your milk and you’ll know why.

Yesterday, I got my CSA box for the month from Capay Farms’ Farm Fresh to You program. All the produce is organic and locally grown through Capay or one of their partners. I’ve been with them for about half a year and so far I’ve enjoyed it quite a bit. You just let them know what box size you want, and whether you want the mix of veggies/fruits. They come and deliver straight to your door each month or week depending on your preference.

For $21.50 a box (I get the smaller box), you get 4 veggies and 2 fruits. This week I got about 1 lb of heirloom tomatoes, 2 lbs of star frinson red pears (see picture to the left), 1.5 lbs of organic grapes, 2 lemon cucumbers (never seen this before!), and organic bok choy. In the picture below, I stir fried the bok choy for dinner today in fresh ground garlic and ginger and then tossed some salt, soy sauce and sesame oil to complete the dish. Give this CSA program a try! They deliver to most of the Bay Area.

Thanks to Om Organics‘ resource directory, here are companies that deliver organic meals to your door in the Bay Area:

• Aubergine Service: Catering, meal delivery Area: San Francisco & East Bay (Oakland, Berkeley, Albany & El Cerrito) p/e: 510.704.8847, joan@auberginecatering.com Specialty: Vegetarian & meat options.
• Convergence Catering Service: Catering, meal delivery Area: Bay Area p/e: 831.469.4643, converge@convergencefoods.com Specialty: Vegetarian & vegan options.
• Cook SF Service: Meal delivery Area: San Francisco p/e: 415.513.5328, info@cook-sf.com Specialty: Vegetarian and meat options. Specializing in California cuisine.
• Dining In SF Service: Meal delivery Area: San Francisco, Marin, East Bay, Peninsula p/e: 415.255.2433, traci@dininginsf.com Specialty: Vegetarian & meat options.
• Marcus Rios Service: Catering, personal chef, meal delivery Area: Bay Area p/e: 415.350.3113, marcus@chefmarcusrios.com Specialty: Customized vegetarian or meat menus
• Peal Cuisine Service: Meal delivery Area: San Francisco p/e: 415.826.2133, pealweb@gmail.com Specialty: Gourmet vegetarian & vegan options.

After kayaking in Point Reyes’ Drake’s Estero, an awesome bay full of hundreds of birds, wildlife, seals and more, my boyfriend and I tried some cool organic places on our way home from Marin.

Our first stop was at Point Reyes Station, a tiny cute village at the southern end of Tomales Bay, next to Point Reyes national seashore. We found a wonderful store called Toby’s Feed Barn, and inside were local and organic produce, honeys, grains, and even organic animal feed for ranchers in the area. Next to the barn was an organic coffee and tea shop and a yoga center. On Saturdays, this barn hosts the only all local, all certified organic produce market in the Bay Area sponsored by Marin Organic. Toby’s is located on Main Street in Point Reyes Station.

Our next stop going home was in Fairfax, another lovely town in Marin County, but much bigger than Point Reyes Station. We stopped downtown and passed a slew of yoga, alternative medicine, and funky clothing shops. But the best thing we found was Lydia’s Lovin Foods, an organic vegetarian restaurant with live and cooked foods. The decor was warm, the waitress very friendly and food was fast. We tried the Ocean Friendly Nori Roll, filled with sprouted almont pate, avocado, cucumber, lettuce wrapped in nori. Vivek got a detoxing special soup made out of cucumber, celery, and more. He also got a side of very Green Salad–this is the way a salad should be, not like the one in Flea Street Cafe. This salad was fresh, tasty, and had a great flavor (We tried the tahini ginger dressing). The cucumber soup and Nori roll really hit the spot. I’d definitely recommend this place; apparently other people have already, it’s won awards last year for best vegetarian and vegan cuisine and best caterer.

You’ve also probably seen Lydia’s sold at Whole Foods, Rainbow Grocery and other health food stores. They’re known for their raw and sprouted cookies and crackers. I definitely think this is worth trying. Lydia’s is in Fairfax, located at 31 Bolinas Road.