How to Sew a Button: And Other Nifty Things Your Grandmother Knew (6 page)

Step 6:
Repeat steps 4 and 5 four more times.

Step 7:
Wipe your blade with a towel to remove shavings and test its sharpness by slicing into the edge of a piece of paper. If it cuts it easily, then it’s ready to use. If not, repeat step 6 and test again.

Step 8:
Count your fingers. All there? Then it was a success!

• Another way to find an angle close to 20 degrees: Hold your blade perpendicular to your steel. That’s 90 degrees. Tilt your blade (sharp side facing down more) to cut that angle in half (45 degrees). Repeat once more to find 22.5 degrees.
  

• Don’t sweat the angle too much. Anything less than 45 degrees will do, so long as you stay consistent.
  

• Sharpen your knife before every use to make slicing and dicing easier (and safer).
  

• If your knife is huge, congrats! Slide your grip up from the handle a bit until only the fleshy part of your thumb rests on the handle and your fingers are gripping the dull sides of the blade. That’ll give you a little more control.
  

• Take it slow! The speed at which you hone has no bearing on the results.
  

Step 1:
Don’t stress. Breakfast is easy to plot. Lunch is no big whup. And planning your dinners in advance will save you from running to the store after a long day at work and shopping when you’re so hungry you can’t think straight. Take a piece of paper (don’t eat it!) and write down each day of the week across the top.

Step 2:
Check your calendar for the week. On busy days, plan for easy dinners, like pasta. On lazy days, try something more adventurous. Make a note of it on your schedule.

Step 3:
Check your kitchen. Peek inside your fridge and pantry to see if you’ve got any ingredients that must be used right away. Walk out to your garden, if you have one, to see what’s ripe.

Step 4:
Consider the season. If you don’t have your own garden, remember that freshly harvested produce tastes better, costs less, and helps support your local farms (and the environment). And honestly, can you imagine anything better than locally grown heirloom tomatoes in the summertime? Add any seasonal produce to your shopping list.

Step 5:
Check for sales. Skim the newspaper for coupons and store circulars, and plan your meals around them. If chicken is cheap this week, include it in a dinner or two. If beef is on sale, consider a burger or steak night.

Step 6:
Given all that you know, write down your seven dinner ideas. If you need ideas, flip through your cookbooks, look online, or call a friend for her favorite recipe.

Step 7:
Break down each meal into ingredients, and add them to your shopping list.

Step 8:
Hit the store, and feel good knowing you’re saving yourself time and money!

• Not sure what’s in season in your area? Go to
  PickYourOwn.org
  .
  

• Make your menu on a full belly, and you’ll be less likely to plan for things like “Dorito night” or “Pasta in a bread bowl” dinner.
  

• Your dinners should hover around 500 calories, so don’t feel pressured to make extravagant meals every night. Lighter bites will do.
  

• Try to use as many whole foods as possible. If it doesn’t come off a tree or out of the ground, it’s probably not good for you.
  

• Make every plate a rainbow. The more (naturally) colorful your meal, the more likely you are to be getting your vitamins.
  

Gardening
Food prices are rising and food safety is sketchy, but produce from your garden is organic and free. Nothing is more local than your own backyard
.

Step 1:
Choose a spot. Anywhere with loads of sunshine (at least six hours a day) and good drainage will do, whether it’s a backyard plot, a raised rooftop container, a window box, or simply a single pot. A garden is a garden, no matter the size. Take pride in yours.

Step 2:
Plan your crop. Based on your climate, your time, your tools, and your taste buds, choose which vegetables you’d like to grow, and purchase the seeds from your local garden or hardware store. Don’t be afraid to ask your neighbor or local farmer for advice. And remember, you’ll get much more out of a smaller, well-kept garden than a larger, unmanageable patch, so be honest with yourself about what you can swing.

Step 3:
Prepare the soil. Using a shovel, dig your garden seven to ten inches deep. Turn the soil until it’s soft and fluffy, working out any clumps, grass, rocks, or weeds. Don’t be afraid to work up a sweat. With glistening skin and little smudges of dirt on your cheeks, you’ll look hot (in a good way). Mix in any compost if you have it.

Step 4:
Sow your seeds according to the instructions on the back of the seed packets. Depth (often just a finger poke) and spacing (usually six to twelve inches) are key for healthy plants. Label each row with a wooden stake (or even just a popsicle stick), marked with the name of the crop.

Step 5:
Water your garden once a week (it needs about an inch of H
₂
O) in the early morning (before the temperatures begin to rise), and watch it grow!

• Don’t forget to wear a hat and sunscreen when you’re working, even on cloudy days.
  

• Pull weeds (root and all) regularly. Unlike punk-rock hair, wild gardens don’t rock. If they’re unkempt, your veggies will be sapped of nutrients, light, and water.
  

• To learn more about gardening, visit
  garden.org
  .
  

Step 1:
Plant wisely. Select crops that will thrive in your area. The stronger and healthier your plants are, the better they’ll be able to withstand pests. Also, move your crops around each year. Insects can be lazy bastards, so if you move their favorite foods even just a few feet away, they may not make the effort to follow them. Keep in mind, though, that they’re not picky eaters, either. They’ll eat any veggie within the same family, so don’t swap, say, green beans for wax beans or broccoli for cauliflower. Really mix things up.

Step 2:
Run interference. Plant marigolds, tansy, thyme, dill, lemon balm, or garlic (or
any
unrelated flowers or veggies) between each crop. Your barrier plants will not only discourage insects from chomping down the entire row, but they also may attract good-for-your-garden ladybugs, who will eat your greedy guests.

Step 3:
Visit your garden daily, and give it a good once-over. If you see any hungry insects wreaking havoc on your crops, take a deep breath and then send them to la-la land. Squish them, stomp
on them, or drop them in a bucket of soapy water. It sounds rather grim, and possibly even a bit mean, but remember, it’s your responsibility to feed your family, not uninvited pests. You are the quickest, most effective, most natural pesticide available.

Step 4:
Set traps. Leave a rolled-up newspaper near your garden to collect earwigs, and a board on the ground to collect slugs. (No board? Slugs, those slimy little lushes, will also dive into a lidful of beer.) Check your traps once a day and sprinkle any suckers into your soapy bucket, while laughing maniacally. Mwah-ha-ha!