Schwelmo's Welt

...und natürlich gegen Rechts!


I mentioned before I only want to celebrate days which make sense to me.
Here is another one

22.December. And it has even scientific prove.....honestly



PS: Applications only with foto ;-)

Labels: celebration, holy day, sex

I might be more an Aussie than a Kiwi…and that after all those years.

A few weeks ago I saved a possum, I mean I did not kill it. I hope you realized, that this very dangerous what I am doing here. Making public in New Zealand that I let get a possum away on purpose. The archenemies of every Kiwi (I mean the people and the birds) seem to be possums. I think even New Zealand Vegans and priest (actually, that I know for sure) kill every possum they see. So if you don’t here from me for a longer time than I might be in serous trouble or finally started non-stop writing. The preferred way to kill a possum is by driving over it. It very easy, as they stop on the road and basically look into your car light until you smash their head. That might be a bit stupid, but they are no cowards running away. You might call that attitude (that’s what cat owners apparently like on their cats, even I think they are just to stupid to learn and that is mistaken by attitude [gonna get in trouble for that as well]).

Anyway, back to my possum… After a late night at Massey (that is the Uni not a pub!!), I was driving home, while I saw a possum crossing the street. It looked cute..but somehow stoned, while it walked like a bodybuilder. Possum have short front legs so it looks like they have very broad shoulder, when they walk. It stopped in the middle of the road and looked into my front lights, awaiting its death (stupid…bodybuilder like ??). If I would be a Kiwi I would had exhilarate and mad the possum “platt wie ne Flunder”. I thought about the noise it would make and all the intestine and blood, fur and bone pieces stucked on the road and my car (I just got new tires as well). And, anyway, what did that possum do to me? Its no his/her fault/choice to be a possum anyway. So I slowed down and stopped. The possum acknowledged its future and thanked me by nicking twice. Then it went slowly with even broader shoulders to the other side of the street. Maybe it was a bit arrogant and thought it was tougher than my car.

Anyway, I was proud of myself. When I told other people they reacted with fury and misunderstanding. While possums are endangered in Australia they are considered to be a pest here. People, owning domestic cats, told me “don’t you know they kill native birds?”, people feeding ducks and pigeons in the parks said “don’t you know they transmit diseases?”. Farmers who cleared their land from native forest, to have more space for sheep and cattle, are suddenly concerned about the native bush destroyed by possums. Yeah right!

The main excuse is “theyu are not native so its OK to kill them.” But so aren’t cats (Do you drive over cats?), dogs, European ducks, sheep and cows, trouts or deer. And ..ah humans. You don’t drive over humans do you. Even they brought pretty much every pest (including possums) to New Zealand and killed most of the native birds (“When was the last time you saw a Moa?”) and bush!

And unrelated to that I finally found a beer which I really, really like. Coopers Pale Ale (See on the picture with some beautyfull stirfry, with noodles and Vegan Oyster Sauce)

It is bottle fermented, family owned and Australian!

PS: I do think possums are a problem…but I will not kill them. I also think they look cute.

Labels: Australia, dairy, Farming, New Zealand, Possum, vegan

You find some more (better) pictures at Dan's Flickr site. And also here in francais.

About 3 weeks ago I decided finally to write my thesis. I thought I really have to do it. Otherwise it might be to close to be finished before my visa is running out. And then I thought that it really sucks writing for 24/7 just when summer starts. I also can’t go away over summer. So I came up with following selfish plan. After 3 weeks of writing (HAVN’T WRITTEN A WORD YET) I deserve a holiday, not a big one but at least one holy day. OK, I am not religious, but the 1st November is World Vegan Day. Ahh, and I am eat Vegan! So I send out that email to ask if there would be anyone interested to go spending a day somewhere “far enough away from Palmy that it doesn’t feel like Palmy, but close enough to go back to work the next day” and also celebrate World Vegan Day with a Vegan picnic, drinking vegan New Zealand brewed beer and throwing Frisbees and kicking balls. As I am the only Vegan I know here, I also thought I might get some food, which I didn’t need to prepare myself. Yeah., finally other people cooking for me! And the only thing I had to do was sending out a bloody email to ask if people are keen. And they were! A lot of people seemed to like the challenge of cooking with a handicap. (Actually I hope that it isn’t that alienated anymore for some). And also a lot of people are waiting desperate for summer and doing something with it. So I actually got heaps more response as I expected, when I decided at the Saturday in three weeks ahead will be good weather and people will cook especially for me. While you might call it selfish I think it is the most Buddhist thing I ever done. Five or 6 years ago I went to see the Dalai Lama giving a public lecture at Eden Park in Auckland. As far I remember, he said it is good to be selfish. If you are selfish, you are looking for your own happiness. But you only find true happiness (and we are all looking for true happiness and not schadenfreude (why do they only take bad words from German into English?? Why isn’t there actually an English word for Schadenfreude, that they have to take ours..are we that bad??)) , if people around you are happy as well. So you help them and try to make them happy. I kind of think a lot of people did actually had quite fun to cook something vegan (maybe the first time in their life) and to have a reason to go out of Palmy, even just for a day. The latter is probably the main reason why people were so keen. I should have done similar things before (it always depends, what YOU make out of it).
But I feel a bit under pressure. As I am the only Vegan , I should know how to cook Vegan (which isn’t that difficult). But I did a big mistake. I made stuff I never cooked before. I made a parsnip-carrot-cashnew roast. (by the way: does anybody know what parsnip are in German and are there parsnips Germany??). Parsnips have a kind of anis taste, which you like or hate. I also made a vegan pizza. But instead of doing a pizza I made before, which was very yummy.,….very, very yummy…. I tried out a completely new recipe.
Not sure about the taste (how do you want convince people that vegan food does not need to be bad, pale , if you cook something you never tasted before) …willl see tomorrow! Especially the “cheesy topping” which cost a lot of money did not convince me. But I had fun cooking, listen to Punk, Heavy Metal and a bit of Soul very loud on my mp3 player. I especially recommend Sepultura while doing the dishes, or maybe Aretha Franklin. Parliament didn’t work at all. I haven't thought about "Fresh Fruits for Rotten Vegetables" from the DK's which actually seems to be appropiate.
Part of the fun might have been the six pack beer (“Royal Dutch Post Horn Lager” beer), which I haven’t checked to be vegan or not.
The good thing with vegan food is that is automatically ”halal” and “kosher” (das nenn ich mal Bruecken bauen zwischen den Religionen) . I asked my Muslim flatmate, if it still will be kosher…ahh …halal (it’s the same anyway), if the cook was drunk. He said, it would. He also told me that meat (not from a pig of course) is halal as long no human being had sex with the goat, sheep, chicken, cattle or fish (sex with fishes??? You are sick, people!). While this might be a problem for a lot of Muslims in Australia, Scotland, New Zealand and Greece ( “IS YOUR SHEEP/GOAT REALY A VIRGIN, MATE??”), I am quite sure nobody had sex with one of the vegetables we are eating tomorrow. Well, kind of sure. Don’t wanna think about it at least….., but then …NO.

I also decided only to celebrate days which are important to ME. So there is no Christmas (OK there is as I have a day or 3 off and all other (Western) people do something,) ……..25th of November is BND….”Buy Nothing day”! ("Wer jetzt noch kauft ist selber schuld." "Spend a day without spending!") And also “Day against Violence Against Women”. Maybe we can combine it, having a gathering only with things we didn’t buy which don’t harm women. But then I don’t really like shoe parties!

Oh, I realize that I am actually quite drunk…..well, that is cooking.

Yeah, that was fun. Even though it was a bit hard to get out of bed (due to the Post Horn Dutch) I got up early and started to worry as the sky looked a bit cloudy and especially dark near the mountain range were the picnic was suppose to be venued (making up words here, I think). It turned out to be warm and sunny. Most found the way somehow, with some deciding to take a longer scenic gravel road (OK, apparently the description of directions was kind of bad). Spending a nice afternoon playing picnic cricket, soccer,drinking beer and getting sunburned (again). There was also yummy food, and thanks for the effort guys and girls!! With pizza (which turned out to be very nice, partly because of Do’s herbs in the base), Tabouleh, frozen smoothies, selfmade hommous, a tahini banana tart, vegetable roast and marinated Tofu! And falafels which haven’t been eaten, but I am sure they were great. Yeah! And I could eat it all! And especially Jen’s brownies! I loved them! Thanx again!

When I was just thinking about leaving the Kiwis arrived as well. More beer, salads and sausages for the BBQ! !!!!!!!!!!!! And a bit after my flatmates came. The ones without demand for kosher, halal food. My Pakistani flatmate would have been handy to
explain us cricket....

Labels: brownies, celebration, cooking, cricket, halal, holy day, kosher, music, muslim, parsnip, people, punk, schadenfreude, vegan