Happy Holidays to the Proud People’s Republic of Berkeley

Feeling the love for my adopted home town.

Let’s pick up groceries at the Berkeley Bowl, have an expresso at The People’s Cafe, and line up for hours to buy a  pizza from the Cheeseboard (better pizza than Chicago and New York united – yeah, talking to you Jon Stewart!) 

Happy Holidays one and all.

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Alon Shalev is the author of the 2013 Eric Hoffer YA Book Award winner, At The Walls of Galbrieth, The First Decree, and Ashbar – Wycaan Master Book 3 – all released by Tourmaline Books. Shalev is also the author of three social justice-themed novels including Unwanted Heroes. He swears there is a connection. More at http://www.alonshalev.com and on Twitter (@elfwriter). Hang out with Alon on Google+

Buying Organic – Hard on the Wallet.

It is always tough to shop for groceries on a tight budget, but going through the produce section is particularly hard. We are blessed in California to have a wide choice of organic fruit and veg, but it also makes it harder to fill the shopping cart and head for the cashier. And let’s not talk about the guilt complex with the kids.

After one such challenging foray into the Berkeley Bowl, an excellent supermarket with an impressive organic section, I followed a car home with the following bumper sticker.

So, for those of you in a similar position to me, here are two sites to maybe help.

1) What is the real price of organic food.

2) Why is Organic Food More Expensive

How do you handle the difference in price and your own financial restraints? Please let me know by leaving a comment.
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Alon Shalev is the author of The Accidental Activist and A Gardener’s Tale. He is the Executive Director of the San Francisco Hillel Foundation, a non-profit that provides spiritual and social justice opportunities to Jewish students in the Bay Area. More on Alon Shalev at www.alonshalev.com