SUMMERTIME AND THE LIVING IS EASY
As I write this in late June, we're just on the other side
of a very high energy Solstice.
Patterns and activities are shifting: People are off on vacations
and those of us still in Portland find ourselves up later at
night because of the longer light. The fresh fruits and vegetables
available at the local farmer's markets (in our case at People's
Food Co-Op) just gets better and better. If you're trying to
eat in season, this is a time when it gets easier and more delicious
to accomplish that. Enjoy your summer and take advantage of the
nutrition powerhouses out there.
And for preserving the summer's abundance, don't forget that
Mirador carries tools and gadgets for all your canning and preserving
needs, including jars, lids, funnels, jelly bags, canners, cherry
pitters, bean slicers, apple corer/slicer/peelers, food dehydrators,
pressure canners, etc. And we also carry two great books on preserving:
Stocking Up III and Canning and Preserving Without Sugar.
New Products
We are still busy filling our new space with a lot of new
products. Much of what we have been ordering has been inspired
by customer requests for various items. Being a community store,
we want to carry what people want. Some of these are described
below. Look for many more to come in the Fall issue.
Yoga Mats, Belts and BlocksAll
in Purple
We had numerous requests for yoga mats, so we've added them,
as well as blocks and belts for a full work out. It is heartening
to see a product like this be in demand, as it means there is
a lot of yoga being practiced.
For those times when you went a bit too far in that stretch or
did a little too much gardening, we have herbal packs that can
be heated or cooled for soothing sore muscles. Some are contoured
for the neck and others are a straight pack 4.5" x 17"
so they can be used where needed on the body. I keep one in the
freezer wrapped up in a plastic bag so I can do frequent cold
therapy. They all smell heavenly from their therapeutic herbs.
These are made locally by Herbal Concepts, who also make an herbal
eye pillow we carry that can be used cold or at room temperature.
These are great for headaches or as an aid to get back to sleep
Auro Contact Glue
For those of you who need glue but don't want the toxic fumes
of regular glues, we are now carrying a non-toxic contact glue
made in Germany. It is made from dammar (a resin from a tree
grown in Southeast Asia), natural latex, water, casein, orange
oil, borates (which seems to be a preservative related to borax)
and rosemary oil.
We've used this to glue our broken teapot spout together (for
the umpteenth time) and it works as well as the bad stuff, without
the toluene, benzene or other -enes to make you sick or give
you psychoactive effects.
Wooden Clothes and Plastic Bag Dryers
We finally got in some more plastic bag dryers, which many
people had been requesting. These are handmade in Eugene by one
guy, who makes a batch, then makes something else which
is why they are sometimes unavailable.
Also made by the same person, we've started carrying wooden clothes
drying racks. These are perfect for outdoor use in dry weather
or in the basement or spare room in wet weather. In this "new
time" of energy awareness, these can reduce your energy
bill and help the planet at the same time.
Canning Equipment Rental
Canning and preserving season is upon us and we have decided
to rent out two pieces of canning equipment that we carry.
The Steam Juicer can be used for juicing grapes, apples, cherries,
plums, pears, berries, currants, tomatoes or rhubarb.
I have used this on our grapes and can say that it is easy to
use and it works great. Before I used this, processing grapes
was a long, messy affair. With this, the hardest part is cleaning
the grapes and you don't even have to remove all of the
stems!
The Juicer/Strainer is hand-operated and works on soft fruits
or vegetables, or hard fruits and vegetables, such as apples
or winter squash, that are cooked first. This device is good
for making squash pureé, applesauce, tomato sauce, grape
juice, salsa, berry pureé, baby food, jams or jellies.
The Juicer/Strainer separates the skins and seeds from the fruit
or vegetable quickly and easily. I used this last year on half
of our grapes and made delicious raw grape juice. I also processed
our tomatoes -- it was much faster than having to skin whole
tomatoes in hot water before canning.
This is a good way to do your fruit and vegetable processing
without the expense of a purchase. The Juicer/Strainer rents
for $7.50/ day; the Steam Juicer is $10.00/day.
New Omega Nutrition Center
We have just started carrying a new machine by the Omega juicer
people that will, in addition to fruits and vegetables, juice
wheatgrass and other greens. This juicer will also chop and mince
vegetables like garlic, pepper, ginger, etc; it can be used to
make nut butters, frozen desserts, baby food, patés, batter
for dehydrator crackers and cookies, and other smooth food items;
and, finally, it can be used to make pasta noodles or breadsticks!
We haven't tried it yet, but it looks really good and carries
a five year warranty.
Craft Market at Mirador
Our parking lot is open for any craftspeople interested in
setting up a booth. We are open to having people here any day
of the week, though Saturday is usually our busiest day and so
may be the best day for a crafts booth.
We have had people selling Tibetan and Nepalese goods, willow
furniture, and wooden cutting boards. Now Marcy is outside with
a cart selling flowers and hand-sewn clothes. We have found that
having someone in the parking lot attracts business to us and
vice versa.
There is no fee at this time, although we may change this if
there is more demand than we can handle. Anyone interested in
space should contact us.
.
New Discount Policy
Due to low margins, we are no longer able to give discounts
on the following items:
Electrical Appliances (such as juicers, dehydrators, electric
grain mills)
Multi-Pure Water Filter Items
Consignment Products
Used Products
We have marked down the juicers and grain mills so that there
is still a little discount from previous prices.
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