Category Archives: simplicity

revolution, part II


So I did set a few New Year’s revolutions.

The first one is that I will eat more fruits & veggies each day–at least 5 servings of different f&v, and most of them raw.

Might sound like a funny resolution for a vegetarian, but it’s one that I need. I’ve gotten into a rut of eating a lot of processed foods–mostly starches or simple carbs–and I need the vitamins and fiber from the real thing.

The second part of that resolution is that I need to eat more organic produce. It’s a bit beyond our budget to _buy_ all or even lots of organics. But I really should (and will) grow more myself, year-round.

The odd thing about keeping this resolution so far this year is that I’m not cold anymore. I am almost _always_ cold–so cold that I carry a cardigan sweater with me and wear it most all the time. So cold that I can rarely go sockless, and anytime I read I have to have a blanket to cover me up. So cold that I can’t sleep at night w/o John next to me because he is my only source of heat.

But the last few days I’ve been warm, even downright hot. At night I’ve been scooched way over to my side of the bed–not even touching John. I’ve been wearing shorts and short-sleeves. It’s a lovely feeling to be warm.

Maybe it’s not a side-effect of the increased veggie consumption. But I feel like it is because that’s all that’s changed in my life/diet lately.
🙂

ready or not

Everywhere I’ve gone in the last few days I’ve gotten the same question from people:

“Are you ready for Christmas?”

The first time I got this question (about 3 weeks ago) I was at the doctor’s office and I was still in the throes of classes. I think I shocked the receptionist when I answered,

“No, I haven’t really even thought about it yet.”

She gave me a weird look in response. I started to qualify my answer, explaining that I can’t really ‘think’ about Xmas until after finals week, etc. But the weird look stayed on her face….

And yesterday, when all of the other women at church were chatting about their holiday preparations, I realized that I must really be strange. One lady was saying how she doesn’t mind if she can’t quite get all the decor up in time–it makes it just that much more fun the next year when she ‘rediscovers’ the stuff she didn’t use. Another was talking about the hassle of mailing packages overseas early, etc. I sat back and was very quiet. I thought about how quickly my one box of Christmas paraphenalia can be put up and taken down (2 hours, tops), and how our easy-to-assemble fake tree takes about 20 seconds to put together.

Several years ago I decided that I wouldn’t ever make my holiday preparations complicated because I didn’t want the decorating headaches–esp the one that comes after Christmas when it takes weeks to get all the decorations put away.

Ironically, each year the process becomes simpler, not more complex. So when other people are moaning about being “ready,” I have little to add. And while they’re fretting about the Martha-like perfection of their preparations, I’m sitting in a patch of sunshine on the LR floor with Ellycat–listening to carols, basking in the warm glow, and savoring every moment of the holiday season.

pounds

Spent the morning at the “by the pound” goodwill clothing store. It’s not a store, really, just a warehouse w/open sides and rows of tables. On the tables are heaps of clothes. Mounds of clothes. All of them discards from goodwill donations. Instead of selling them by the piece, they sell them for $2/lb.

I was ready for the store, having been to the one on Bfield a few years ago. I had a stash of plastic bags and was ready for whatever I might find on the tables.

Today I wasn’t looking for any treasures for myself or my family. Instead I was filling bags with little kids clothes for a local homeless shelter. I knew that I could spend about $20 and come out with enough winter clothing for a dozen kids. And I did. I found jackets, jeans, long-sleeved shirts, socks, sleepers, etc. All in very good condition.

Part of me was disgusted as I sifted through the clothes–to think that they were so little used and so easily cast away. To see items that were “last year’s style,” but still full of wear. To think that we live in a culture where some kids are cold at night and others have drawers full of the latest fashions. It all seems so pointless when you’re standing in a cold warehouse, wondering about those who donated the items, hoping to ease the burden of those who will receive them, feeling guilty that my own closet is so full.

holiday

Tomorrow we are off to Aunt Susan’s house to celebrate “Anti-Consumer Day.”

This festive event is always the Friday after Thanksgiving. We gather and play games for much of the day. We do crafts. We jump on the trampoline and look at photos. We eat good food. The one thing we don’t do is shop.

Chris MacMurdo started this tradition a few years ago and each year it gains momentum–the circle of celebrants widens. So my challenge to each of you is to join in the fun. Even if you can’t be with us at Suz’s house, you can be with us “in spirit” as you commemorate AC Day in your own home.

🙂

freecycle

I’ve written about freecycle before, but today I’m feeling particularly grateful for all of the new friends I’ve made through the freecycle community and I wanted to share a few of my freecycle experiences from the last two years….

–One of my first (and most memorable) freecycle finds happened when a man from Long Beach offered composting worms. What a weird offer! But to me, an avid gardener, it was a treasure! I’d had a vigorous vermiculture bin on my back porch for several years to compost our table scraps, but the previous winter we’d had some particularly cold days and my worms had all died from frostbite. I missed the ability to compost our waste, and I also missed the “black gold” fertilizer that resulted from the process. I contacted him, got directions to his place and set out w/Caroline to meet the worm guy. When we arrived at his apartment (which happened to be above a flower shop), he then led us out to a homemade ladder that led up to his roof garden. I only made it about halfway up the ladder before my fear of heights kicked in. Caroline, OTOH, coninued fearlessly on up the ladder–her flip-floppy heels clacking on each step. After a few long minutes (where I stood at the bottom of the ladder wondering how things were going up on the roof), Caroline and worm guy emerged with a large bucketful of red worms in compost. She and I laughed about the oddness of the event, and it’s since become a favorite story for me to tell. And the worms are still happily producing fertilizer for our garden! 🙂

–Another favorite freecycle experience came from an offer that I posted for LDS romance novels. Because I am sent so many LDS novels to review (for Irreantum), I wanted to give a away a few of the older books. I got a response from LC, who turned out to not only be a fan of such novels, but she was also in the middle of writing her master’s thesis on LDS romantic fiction. She and I met for lunch and by the end of the conversation she’d agreed to become a member of my review team. Since then Lisa and I have met several times and she’s written some fantastic articles for me. 🙂

–Though it’s always a thrill to find something that I want on freecycle, it’s an even bigger thrill to fulfill someone else’s “Wanted” posts. Indeed, as I’ve been on freecycle for such a long time now, the thrill of seeing a post for an “almost new sofa” or a “cherry wood dresser” has long since worn off. So, one day a post for an LDS temple dress caught my eye. I wondered why someone had posted such a request as I thought about the extra temple dress that was hanging (unused) in the back of my closet [for those of you who don’t know what temple dresses are–they are long-sleeved, floor-length white dresses that are rather hard to find anywhere but in speciality shops and they can cost from $35-100]. I replied to this woman’s message and we had a great conversation. It turned out that she was looking for the dress for her neice who would be marrying soon. And it turned out that the dress I had was just the size that she needed for her neice. So this woman and I met and I gave her my dress. She gave me a big hug and I felt a huge endorphin rush–the kind of misty-eyed feeling where you want to sing a sixties folk song about peace, love & happiness.

–Those of you who’ve been to our home know that every piece of furniture has a story. There’s the pioneer table from Rebecca, and the blanket chest from great-grandma, etc. Since joining freecycle I now have many more stories to tell. There’s the dining room table that John picked up from a young couple in North Irvine, the canopy bed from Rita, the beanbag from K that the kids and I hand-carried across UCI campus, etc. And along with those stories are the tales of all of the people that we’ve blessed with our un-needed stuff–like E’s old fancy dresses that are now being enjoyed by another young half- Japanese girl, the spent printer cartridges that Ch used as a funraiser for his pet charity, the roller suitcase that accompanied two young sisters on a trip to their grandma’s house, etc.. Through this gifiting and receiving we’ve created bonds with many people that have lasted beyond the initial transaction.

What a joy! 🙂

the sweater song

I have a favorite sweater that I really like to wear
Even on days when it’s covered with the kitties’ hair.
I’ve had it for 5 years and I’ve changed the buttons twice
It’s been to France and England, and it’s been in snow and ice.
I put it in my closet, hiding it from view.
Hoping to stop wearing it because it’s looking quite un-new.
But when it’s cold and dreary, or when I need a hug,
It’s my soft and threadbare sweater that I really, really love.

Written in less than 5 minutes by me. In the few minutes I had today between picking up the kids from school and taking E to girl scouts.

local

We go to a local music store.

We’ve been customers there for six years or so. The place is crazy with long-haired geeky musician guys–most of whom are still wearing the same favorite rock band T-shirts they loved in high school (and for them high school was in the ’70s). But Jim’s is a totally cool place–wizened rockers included.

Today C’s cello need new fine tuners, two new strings and a repair to a tuning peg (the D string, I think). I cringed when I brought it in. I’d been putting it off for weeks because I didn’t want to have to pay for the fixes.

But Randy, the repair guy, took a quick look and mumbled a few numbers. We chatted a bit about how old the cello is and how much C uses it (which is a lot). He said he’d have it fixed in 2 hours and it’d cost $55 bucks.

How cool is that?
🙂

jana’s breakfast of champions

–1/3 c. Irish Steel-Cut Oats, cook (the kind that come in a can and take half an hour to cook)
–1/3 c. Trader Joe’s lowfat organic vanilla yogurt (yah, it’d probably be tastier w/creamline, but I’ve gotta watch the calories)
–one peeled, diced, fresh peach (a nectarine will do, too)
–a handful of sliced almonds
–a splash of Cannon vanilla (top secret family recipe that involves vanilla beans imported from Tahiti that ferment in dark bottles in the back of the spice cupboard)
–a dash of hand-grated nutmeg

Stir.
Throw your head back and chew in ecstasy.
If you’re really lucky–like I was this morning–you will get a shoulder massage while eating. If so, make deep sighs of satisfaction and swear to start every morning just the same way.
🙂
PS: If you’re eating this for dessert, as I am wont to do, you can increase the vanilla splash to a TB or 2….

Free

freecycle.org is the coolest group ever…
Our family has been blessed in numerous ways by this group–we’ve gained a bookshelf, a mountain bike, some dishes, and even a garden statue. We’ve also given away many things that others have valued. It’s such a great way to share and receive the abundance of this world!
So, join!!