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Sometime back, about two months before leaving for the latest trip to Europe to be exact, my beloved Parmesan rotary cheese grater bit the dust. It wasn't a surprise. It was a gift and it was a Chinese made model with a good deal of plastic to it. Naturally, part of the plastic broke and because most of the damned thing was plastic, it couldn't be recycled. Plop. There goes another piece of landfill out the door. I was not happy in this and the fact that I had to grate Parmesan with the larger, box grater which while functional, was simply not as handy as the rotating one. Thusly, the search was on for a replacement.       My requirements for a new grater were simple. Firstly, it had to be all metal construction. This way if it ever got too dull or just broke, it could at least be smelted back down for use in new cheese-tacular escapades. The second requirement is that it absolutely not be made in China (I prefer at least five years out of my kitchen implements) and preferably in a First World country, where we can, in theory, control the sweatshops.       I was willing to pay for these requirements, because I know that you have to these days in order to try and be a better consumer. It just unfortunately turned out that the only grater I could find in the US was this one you see below, the Rotary Grater. It seems nice, but it can't be found for less than $100. That's a bit steep for a cheese grater. I could actually pay myself my hourly rate to build one at that cost, so I put this on hold for a bit and continued to get cheese everywhere when using the box grater.       Suddenly, along came, Auchan the other day. It was there, deep in the bowels of their cheese-laden aisles that I found the replacement grater, which you can see below. It was all metal, made in France, and less than €10. In other words, it was a veritable bargain. I probably should have cleaned out all that they had, brought them back to the US and sold them for five times the cost to discerning cooks. You can in fact get these graters in a number of places throughout Europe, but I feel a bit of pride knowing that mine is coming home with me, thanks to the good ole France-ola.

One of the great advantages of sitting in Figueres, in the north eastern chunk of Spain near France is that you get to see things like the trucker's strike live and first hand when you make day trips up to France. This strike is a big deal. The truckers are essentially choking off all supplies in to Spain as well as not moving any goods, and more importantly, fuel, through the rest of Spain. But, don't take my word for it, let's dip in to some BBC-esque language from Nigel Nigglebits, which you can hear a recording of below.       Farce aside, it goes to show that it only takes two days before all hell breaks loose in a 21st century society. The lines at gas stations are massive as everyone fears that gas supplies will run out. Minor goods are indeed starting to run out at smaller shops and while the tourism season is just starting in Spain, if there's a lack of gas for people visiting, you can be sure that cheap French, Brits, Dutch, and Germans won't be making the trip to Spain this year for inexpensive alcohol and beaches, which as great as that may sound, will take an enormous toll on a country that is already starting to have economic problems from a housing slowdown like we've seen in the US.       But, it's interesting to see the mentality that prevails here in Europe. As this same problem has been hitting the US in the airlines, where they just pass on the fuel cost increases and then some to the consumer, the truckers aren't doing that. They are trying to maintain their prices without killing the consumers. Yes, the strike is not good for the society at large, but the strike is looking more longterm and seeing that there needs to be some form of regulation or inflationary problems will persist. It's dreamy to have this kind of thinking and it's dreamy to see that people are forcing the government to take action as opposed to how we in the US always feel we have to take things on ourselves because the government won't. Someday we might remember that those in office are actually there to serve us.       This will supposedly be resolved this week, but in the meantime, it's going to be a lot of staying home and not going anywhere too far, since with 40% (and climbing) of the gas stations running out of gas, extra travel is not advisable. Oh, and for those who are complaining about gas nearing $5 a gallon in the US, it's nearing $10 a gallon in Europe.

Underwear is a simple thing when you get down to it, but for some reason, women get screwed on the pricing of it. The Victoria Secrets of the world have jacked up the prices for basic bras and underwear to insane levels. Well, it appears that the same mafia is trying to dig its dirty hands in to the underwear of men.       I had to replace boxers that were lost in DR Congo due to housecleaners who had their own system that didn't involve telling me where my underwear had gone while they were washing it, thus causing to get left behind when trying to catch the 4:30 bus to the airport in Bukavu. Thusly, once back in Spain, I went out to try and find some new boxers only to have it revealed that everything is at least 10€. What the hell? That translates in to $15 a pair with the exchange rate. I felt blessed when I found a two pack for 18€, which were nothing special or name brand like Calvin Klein.       This is obviously the price fixing work of a mafia, based in Barcelona and making men's underwear a lucrative enterprise. The only thing that they don't understand is that unlike women who will replace their underwear if the wrong breeze hits it, men will not replace their underwear until the last dying thread of them falls off. A great many of us don't see the point of underwear (let me emphasize I am not one of these bears) and so it is seen as a slightly more than necessary evil only to be bought in the rarest of circumstances. It's because of this that I hope this mafia will die off in coming years, otherwise I predict there will be The Great Underwear Crunch of 2019 that will not be pretty.

Number One Fan and I have been going around, looking at various wedding items lately. While everything in the wedding world is overpriced and is deeply rooted in emotional usury, the worst offenders of the lot have to be the people making wedding dresses. For a long time, I thought that the profit killing funeral homes made off of taking advantage of people when they were in the depths of despondency from losing a loved one, were horrid. Now I'm realizing that those in the bridal business are just as bad if not worse. For, the people working in death are doing a job that most none of us really want to do and there is a cost to pay to have people doing those jobs. Those working in weddings try to wrap everything joy and love and doves and white satin to cover the fact that they're trying to get you to spend tens of thousands of dollars on what may be the happiest day of your life, but one that will put you in debt for decades to come.       So, when it comes to wedding dresses, it isn't the fact that most everything I see is some god awful tribute to lace and rhinestones, but more the fact that everything is so overpriced. An average, basic dress that is nothing special and hopefully not horribly ugly will cost about $500-1,000. There is no reason for this other than the fact it is a "wedding" dress. Make the dress black and put it on the 2nd floor of your average Macy's and suddenly the same dress is at most $200.       It's not like there is any special care that has gone in to these dresses. Once I got tired of looking at what is essentially the same thing over and over, I started looking at manufacturing tags. Sure enough, all of the dresses under $1,000 were made in China or some other country that relies heavily on sweatshop. So in the end, there's what, $50 or $10 or even $5 of expense in these dresses? Naturally, I have no hard figures as no one wants to look in to this because everyone is either too fixated with trying to find their special dress or sell one of these special dresses.       Of course, if you want something fancy like Vera Wang you're talking $5,000 and up. At least these dresses look good, but are they also made in China? If so, how can this be anything but laughable, filthy greed?       Ah yes, there is the other screwy facet in all of this is that you simple cannot try on a wedding dress without an assistant and most likely only by booking an appointment with said assistant. This may seem classy, when in reality all they're doing is upselling you and something bigger and fluffier than you wanted with the, "Oh, just splurge, you only do this once!" Folks, the divorce rate in the US is a bit of 50%, so don't listen to this line of crap.       I don't know what to say and it seems that so many women are hell-bent on paying these outlandish prices for a dress that they wear once that there isn't much that can be done about it. I'm betting that even if Oprah did a special on it, it wouldn't change a lick and it's sad because not only could that money be put to better uses in life, but it could be spent on a better party for the guests. I mean really folks, when it comes down to it the only thing people remember about your wedding is how much they drank and how much they ate and if either of these items were worth the wedding present they gave you. So, feed your guests and skimp on the dress!

Czech Dream. At the very least it sounds like really bad porn, but for people living in Prague, in 2003, it was the name of a new, and super-duper-mega incredible hypermart that was coming their way. The only catch is that it never came. Two fellows by the name of Vít Klusák and Filip Remunda created this whole charade as a film project to show how capitalism has the former Communist countries of Eastern Europe firmly in its grasp.       This film was released quite some time ago, but it has only recently been released on video in the US by Morgan Spurlock from Super Size Me and soon to be released, Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden?. Yet, despite the time lapse of five years, the move is still poignant and probably even more so today as we in the Western World buy ourselves in to madness.       The parts that document the marketing process won't be the groundbreaking to those of us in the US who are the least bit familiar with the process, but it's always interesting to see how cocky people in advertising and marketing are. At one point the firm that is helping the filmmakers promote their fake store boasts, "We make people want products that don't even exist." Obviously, we don't need anymore of these people plying their trade these days, but it keeps working, so they keep marketing and they're scary bastards to watch as they play out what are essentially God Complexes.       It's a good movie though and overall it's sad to see how people all walk to the altar of the Almighty Cheap Price no matter what. For those looking to laugh at people doing exactly what Americans do who don't happen to be American, check it out. I think that people looking to see a commentary on the current direction and decline of the 21st century citizen might get a bit more out of it though.

These days, now that there are two of us in the household and thusly about 1.5 times more waste (not twice as much, as two people are more economical living together) I really try to make the effort to not throw away anything except organic waste. I like to run with the assumption that somewhere, someone can use what I am not using anymore. To this, I might add that I mean someone local. It is often the case when donating large, obsolete items to developing nations, you can do more harm than good with how much trouble it is for them to receive something that they can ultimately buy for less than what it takes to get it in to the country. Take that in to account when you think you're doing good by shipping off your 15 year old megalith to somewhere in Sub-Saharan Africa.       So, #1 Fan and I did some Spring cleaning recently and got rid of a great many things that were hogging up space in the 63 square meters we call home. But instead of just throwing them out, we tried Freecycle. Previous to this, I had just left items down on the Free Shelf or out in the very Free Street. Freecycle seemed to have some advantages, as you were basically advertising items that you wanted to get rid of and the people responding were really interested in getting them. Ultimately we had mixed results and realized that Freecycle is best for those living in a rural setting who don't have a Free Shelf or a Free Street to easily toss items out upon. But, following is a run down of what works and what doesn't in each situation.              Freecycle       It's a website, but it's mostly an email list that people post on and respond to. It seems like a great idea and a way to circulate things that you just don't need to those who do need them. The principle is sound, but the how it plays out in the end is not. The two issues with Freecycle are the hoarders and the flakes. The former group are those that see something for free and think, "Hey, it's free, I could probably use that somehow." and they just respond to any and all postings no matter if they need it or not. This group sorta cripples the purpose of Freecycle and makes it a free for all that's about as useful as the Shelf or Street method. This group is also most likely where the flakes spring from. There are so many countless, endless people on Freecycle who just never show up to pick up something that they said they were going to pick up. It's pretty maddening really and makes giving things away a real pain.       Again, Freecycle is probably best for those living outside large cities, but then again, those are the areas with the fewest people subscribed.              Free Street       Yeah, just dumping it out on the street. It's simple, but it can also make a neighborhood ugly. You can also get ticketed for doing it. In reality, unless you have something big that's in nice condition, it's a pretty crappy thing to do. This is about the only case where I do it. One exception is where I'm getting rid of an older pair of shoes. I go and put them on top of a trash can around the corner. Ultimately, some homeless guy will always pick them up and get some use out of them still. And of course, if this doesn't happen in less than a day, I would go back down and toss them in the trash.       The biggest mistake [lapse in judgment] most people do is to put out old couches or mattresses on the street. These almost never get picked up until after some homeless guy has slept on them for a night or two and then the municipal trash ultimately tosses them.              Free Shelf       Probably the best method. I often leave things down on the shelf in my apartment, but then again, you really need to live in a decently large apartment to pull this off. This method runs the risk of angering the building manager though, unless you just put one or two items down there that are small and could really be used by someone else.       Lately, folks have been abusing the Free Shelf. Art students moving out (who never live in the building for longer than two years) will just dump all their crap down there. All of their "ironic white trash" apparel will end up on the shelf and stay there for days until the building manager tosses it. Some kids even left a pile of used bras and underwear. This is pretty ridiculous as a) no one in this building will pick it up and b) there are three charity groups and can actually use it. I've seen it end up in the trash on more than one occasion.       Even still, I love the Free Shelf and think that it's just the bomb for person to person recycling.              Free Box       I close with one extreme failure of the whole free recycling thing which was the Free Box at Peoples' Park. That box came to epitomize the worst of out capitalist society with it getting raiding by guys in the area who lived in the park and who got in fights with the other guys at the box over the junk people would dump there. They then ultimately sold whatever they got out of the box, negating the whole purpose of it. I was thankful to hear that it has gotten burned, smashed, and dismantled several times, since its presence in the park always created a bad atmosphere, unlike the Free Shelf in my apartment which just propagates endless love. Really, it does!

Most people I know have probably not been to Nevada City and really, why would they? It's really far from San Francisco and there isn't any skiing or wine at it. But, it is a cute Gold Rush Era mining town that has been well restored instead of being left to decay like so many others. If you're curious, check out the Nevada City gallery I just uploaded for a look-see. As you will hopefully notice, the town does indeed have charm. It also has other things. For instead a grave amount of dirtbags with dreadlocks and a severe lack of showers seem to love to circulate on Commerical Street which is one of two main streets, the other being Broad Street. They do indeed kill a good deal of the charm. But, what really does the place in for me, are the crippies.       As you can read in a previous article, this is a rather annoying group. While on the surface, they at first seem like passive do-gooders, underneath lies a seething person that would condemn you Hell (if they believed in it, since they don't being Buddhists and all) because you don't see things in their conformist, peace-loving ways. Thankfully, they all have a place they can congregate and share tips from the latest issue of Tricycle and this place is Nevada City.       The lovely, old, rustic buildings of the downtown carry a never ending horizon of all the prayer flags, incense, Buddhist quotes on everything, bells, Chinese character encrusted stuff, handmade funky clothes, and whatever else is needed to have all the trappings to appear to be a Buddhist, New Ager, or general Spiritualist. I think the worst one for me is Mountain Song. It pretty much sums up the general aura of this mecca for the anti-corporate people to go and spend, spend, spend.       I gleefully rip in to the general spirit of Nevada City because I've been there many times and I find everything that it's about to be so ridiculously contradictory and faux-lifestyle oriented that the irony is more than a little painful.       But, there are things that I like there however. Besides the cute town, there is the food. Good restaurants have opened up over the years because crippies do love to eat, just like me. There is a Mexican spot on Commercial Street that is really mighty good. Yes, some Mexicans managed to find their way up in to the hills to make Free Trade Burritos. No, they don't call them that, but they'd sell them like crazy if they did. I'm giving that idea free of charge by the way.       I would have to say that my favorite restaurant in the place is the New Moon Cafe. It's generally quite tasty, although quite popular and requires booking for popular weekends. Although, again, the name is just typical of a place where shops can't exist without at least 15% of their merchandise devoted to something dealing with astrology. Had it been the "New Manteca Cafe" it probably would have died off sometime ago and we would have all been the losers in that.

You know, I get really bothered when a company wants to give me an offer, but wants to get something out of me above and beyond my money. The reason I bring this up is because H&M sent out a 25% off promotion to some people. A friend forwarded it to me and just to keep my options open, I wanted to get the coupon.       Now, I rarely shop at H&M anymore as they use sweatshops and 3rd world labor to make just about everything they sell. But on the off chance, something in there isn't from one of these places, I might feel tempted to buy it, thus the interest in having a 25% coupon.       So, going to their site to get the coupon at www.hmfriendsandfamily.com I was more than slightly perturbed by the fact they wanted a rather large slew of my personal information to get this coupon. I'm not happy about that, but I proceeded through the hoops to get to the final page to download the coupon. But as it turns out, you don't need to do this, just to this link - here and you can keep all your private info to yourself if you want.       I might add that this coupon is only good from December 7, 2007 to December 9, 2007, so if you happened upon this article sometime in the future, it ain't gonna do you much good. Happy shopping and watch those labels!       

Nothing really new here to be honest. It was just something that I wanted to set up and it didn't take all the long. Well, that's not true, since I had to rewrite the way that articles are displayed, but it was worth it cos now it's mo better.       So, you can now click on the tags and pull up articles that share those themes. Yeah, I know, whoohoo. It's really something you do for the search engines more than anything else.       But, even so, I had a specific purpose in mind. I wanted to start tagging articles because the state of consumerism in this country sucks. Musing about that led me to want to recount little stories here and there where I made a conscious effort to not purchase cheaply made goods just to save a buck. It's an effort to not bow to the all-consuming attitude that seems to have gripped this country. It's also because after watching various documentaries on sweatshops that run outside the US, I simply can't buy products made in those factories.       Many would say that you don't have much of a choice and on some fronts this is somewhat true. Really though, you always have a choice and from now on, I'm going to tag articles with "Better Buying" if I feel that what I write about could point people in the direction that is opposite to what seems to be the general state of mind right now.       Yeah, I know, you're sitting there wondering, "Has Hudin gotten preachy?" Kinda, but not really. I'll still talk about whackos walking around with frozen turkeys when the opportunity arises.