We Know the Things That Really Matter... Right?

~Adbusters

Bad to the Bone, Again...

We love our little Scion.  It has loads of leg room for the kids.  It has a seat that feels like a seat and not a semi-lounge chair, and has loads of head room for me with my tall torso.  It works for our little family.

We now have a replacement car, as our car is being repaired after what we thought was a minor fender bender.  Turns out, though, that we'll have the loaner car for a few days.

We're driving around in this now.

The kids are digging it and asked us if we could buy it.  They asked in all sincerity and without any irony or humor.  I feel so ridiculous in this thing.  It's fun.

I might have to find a creek with the bridge out so I can take the kids sailing over it screaming, "Yee haw!!" at the top of our lungs.

Yes, I do remember the Dukes of Hazzard fondly.  Why do you ask?

But, What if I WANT to Buy it?!

We sometimes get things new, like swimsuits from Target online for my daughter, because hers from the summer wore out and she'll need it if we go out of town to a motel with a pool. It happens. And, the underwear and socks that I recently bought my kids. We are far from perfect around here, but that's OK (right, Stuart?). In any case, we mostly don't buy it.

What if we want to buy it? What if YOU want to buy it? What if it speaks to you--that perfect shirt or piece of jewelry or book or i-pod/phone/pad thingy? What if you feel you can not live without it? Could you pause and review it? Maybe ask yourself a couple of questions:

Do I have to have this thing, if I already have a similar version of it, or one that's still good, or it's just too expensive, or I know I'll use it a couple of times, and then NOT need it? Do I really NEED it?

My kids NEED underwear and socks. I think it's OK to get those new, so I passed the Yes-I-Really-Do-Need-It-Quit-Badgering-Me! test when I asked myself these questions. If you need it, you need it. Really.

But, what if it's not need but want. You know you don't need it, you just want it. Yes, you already have several pairs like it, but this pair of black shoes has a buckle on the side of it, rather than the front. See? So, it's different. And, it is that very slight difference that is making you want it, not need it. What then?

I would still counsel you to think it through and wait it out and pause and breathe. What will you get if you purchase those kicky new shoes? Will it feed a deep need inside your hole-filled soul? Will it make you feel pretty ala Maria in West Side Story (although, it wasn't shoes that was doing that for her. It was her being lovestruck with Tony...) Besides which, do you think Tony even noticed Maria's shoes? Come on.

But you WANT them, still!!

Fine. Get them. Or, get it. Go ahead. DO IT!

But, next time, you could try to muster some will and resist the urge and forgo your very temporal, frivolous, hedonistic, self-indulgent whim and NOT get it/them. Maybe you would feel empowered by that. Maybe you would feel strong and in charge of yourself and more centered. Maybe it would be worth it to say no to yourself once and see how that feels and know that you can survive it and that you don't feel deprived. YOU ARE STRONGER THAN THE URGE TO GET A NEW PAIR OF SHOES THAT YOU DON'T NEED!!

RAWR!!!

Yes, but they're cute/most recent technology/an upgrade, you counter.

Yeah. I know. Hence the dilemma.

Beautiful hand forged gold earrings from Sundance catalog that I don't NEED, but WANT, but haven't gotten yet...

The Sky

My husband had a wonderful class in college called The Sky which explored naked eye observations of the sky and its machinations. Guess who now knows what a waxing gibbous moon is--yes, that's right, my kids! My husband has been relaying all sorts of sky information to the kids with very clear explanations and drawings on our fabulous giant dry erase board that my husband snagged from work when they were throwing it out.

Actually, we've both been showing the kids all sorts of things now that the board is hanging on the kitchen wall. The kids are also drawing various things up there and it has dramatically changed how we homeschool around here. Who knew such a simple thing could have such a huge effect? And yet, sometimes the right tools make a difference in whatever you're doing. It's there and everyone in this house is now drawn to it.


Last night, my son was looking at the sky with my husband through binoculars and they both saw all sorts of features on the moon. To the east was Jupiter, and then east of that was Uranus. My son is 12... Yes, there are certain jokes that seem to always come up with regard to that particular planet, but we didn't care. He was seeing our universe and understanding it a little bit more.

Today, I saw a story on Huffington Post about a dad and his son who sent a weather balloon into space with an insulated, protective foam wrap around a video recorder and made a film of the balloon ascending 20 miles up into the sky. Inside the foam was an i-phone which acted as a GPS so that they could then retrieve it once the balloon popped and the parachute allowed it to come safely back to earth.

Amazing and fun!

When's the last time you looked up at the sky with wonder and curiosity and interest? You should look up. It's awesome up there! And, if you're 12, it can inspire some hilarity. If you know what I mean...

Because We Have Freedom

The First Amendment Rocks, you know that? Despite my husband's quote at the bottom of this page, "You know, the problem with the internet is it gives everyone a voice.", I think he truly appreciates our ability to say whatever the hell we want in this country--even those from the intolerant right or the intolerant religious zealots. Yes, they get to talk too, and what they say is really the target of my husband's contempt.

Let your freak flag fly, I say.

No, I haven't heard about Jesus, how about you tell me all about him. Obama wasn't born in the U.S.? Tell me about it. Women shouldn't earn as much as a man does for the same job? Hey, let's talk! The Rapture is coming so pollution and consumption and waste doesn't matter? Let's go buy something!!

Tell me all about it.

Because we do have freedom here, not only do we get to say what we want, it's good to keep using our freedoms so they don't get chipped away. (psst. *said in hushed, secretive tones*Bush domestic spying--hey Obama, when you gonna stop that?) I get to say stuff too to counter what they are saying!

Let's take a peek at the First Amenement so we all know what we have the right to do:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.


You can believe, or not believe, anything you want! The government has no say in that. None. Neither to establish (through tax dollars or text in public places), nor to prohibit. If you want to be a Wiccan, you can be. Totally American!! Yes, Fundamentalist Christians, THAT is what America is about. Tolerate that.

Now, because of the First Amendment, you can tell me that I'm going straight to Hell and that I need to get myself right with God!! You can say it, but I don't have to believe it and the government doesn't have to teach it--in fact mustn't teach it. That's just for you. That's your own individual freedom that you have a right to, that can't abridge my own individual freedom that I have a right to. Even Steven.

I can write all of this here, because there is the freedom of the written word, and speech.

Tonight, when my family goes to watch fireworks, we will meet with another family and we get to do that because of the First Amendment. You can go where you want. You can see who you want. We take that so for granted here.

I spoke with a Romanian man once who explained how they would meet people in the city where he was from. No one was allowed to stand near a statue of Nicolae Ceausescu, but it was an obvious place to meet people. So, people would slowly walk in a large circle around it, waiting until their friends would arrive. Can you imagine? You can't just stand there??

Other countries insist on citizens carrying papers identifying them. Crazy, right? It's like old Communist Romania or Russia or Germany during WWII. Who would want that kind of intrusion on personal freedom here in the U.S.? It is soooo UnAmerican, isn't it? Look at the First Amendment. That's American, not anything that seeks to alter that.

I could tell Bush how pissed off I was at his policies and law breaking--torture really is against international law--and, I can tell Obama to get it together and stop all of Bush's policies. Get us out of Iraq. Get us out of Afghanistan. Quit cozying up to the same corporate leaders who made a mess of our economy and environment and fight for the people! That's why we elected you. I can say all of that because I have a right to tell the government whatever I think. I have the right to sue the government when wronged by them. That is American too.

All of these rights are the basis of our American culture. The expression of these rights is what makes this country so fun. You can be who you want and how you want and where you want. It is about freedom here.

As this is the Fourth of July weekend, I think some patriotic music is in order. My friend L. and I were talking last night and we both agreed we like Jimi Hendrix's Star Spangled Banner. It is his free expression of the song, but also his ability to weave in the sounds of bombs and screams that is so compelling. Think of how the Viet Nam War was raging on then and hear the song. Now remember that WE ARE AT WAR EVEN NOW!! STILL!!

We kinda forget that with the daily life thing happening, don't we? Unless you have friends or loved ones in the service, it's not a topic that comes up in daily life. If you read or listen to alternative media sources, it comes up. That's not what most of the mainstream press is covering. But, by God I know that Sandra Bullock was just divorced! What?! Yes, she was. I know that Skechers has a shoe called Twinkle Toes and they realllllly want my daughter to buy a pair. That's a use of the First Amendment, I suppose, but some exposing of wrong doing by the wrong doers would also be a good thing.

Think about your freedoms, use them, and fight the good fight!

Happy Fourth of July everybody!






And for fun here's Purple Haze, which he played right after the anthem.



Enjoy, because you can...

Earth Day 2010!

The Earth

It's Earth Day! Normally this holiday gets me mad. I think it's a time for people to try and do a couple of things, and then forget about the earth the next day--it seems far more symbolic than real to me. On the other hand, maybe it gets people thinking. That's always a good thing.

Food, Inc. was on PBS last night and I watched it. Wow. If you don't already buy any food directly from a farmer, look around to see if it's possible in your area. The more people who are both buying real, untainted food (no GMOs or pesticides or herbicides or synthetic fertilizers), and supporting small family farms or CSAs (Consumer Supported Agricuture--co-ops of a sort) the more the corporate hold of our food supply starts to crumble a little. That's also always a good thing.

To celebrate today, I am going to go out and buy the latest and best of all of the Green products I can find!

No, I'm not. Joking!!

People keep forgetting, "Reduce, Reuse and Recycle" We mostly have a hold on the recycle bit, but reusing things (hand me downs, garage sale and thrift store finds), and reducing in the first place seems to elude a lot of us.

If you need to replace something, see if you can get it used. If you can't then buy green. Buying green to replace perfectly usable things you have doesn't really help anyone or anything--except the Green manufacturers. That's OK except stuff still ends up in the landfills, doesn't it?

Go do something gentle for the earth today--even if it's as small a gesture as not buying something. Just skip it. You'll be OK, really.

Then, think about doing something tomorrow, and maybe all week. If you survive that, try it for a month. You may surprise yourself at your ability to forego stuff you don't need any way.

Try it and see how strong you are. You are woman!! (Or man, depending...)

My Husband Amazes Me

My husband has done it again. He grabbed victory from the jaws of defeat. He looked the enemy in the eyes and did not blink.

He is amazing, I tell you!

See the picture above? That is the wrong amp. but it looks like the kind of fuse that blew out of our washing machine as I was putting in a load of clothes. Clothes, that if you must know (and you must, because this bit adds import) had not a few of my dirty underwear. I needed to do a load of laundry STAT!

The lights came on showing me that the washing machine was running--but there was no water sound. The tub wasn't filling. There wasn't any kind of sound whatsoever. It didn't work!

I called my husband at work, and when he came home he opened up the machine.

That is an action that just never occurs to me. Does it occur to you? Do you think, "Hm. I think I'll just take a peekie boo and see if I can't SEE what the problem might be." I don't think to do that because I don't know what I'm looking for or if I would recognize it if I did see it. "Oh, you mean there aren't supposed to be blown fuses in the workings of the washing machine? Huh." * blink, blink* * blink, blink*

I went to Radio Shack and got the replacement fuse.

My husband just put it in and the washing machine is washing my clothes as I write this to you. It is amazing! But, that's not all...

On the way to work, my husband felt that his bike tire was low. He had a slow leak and was able to stop at a gas station and fill it up enough to get him to work. From work he brought home a battery operated pump and used it as needed on the way home.

When he got home, he fixed the computer that was saying telling us that there was a virus. But, there really wasn't--just spam; it was very urgent, insistent spam. Seemed real.

Isn't he the greatest?

Yeah, he is.

I know it's all a bit of white man's blues. It's first world problems we were facing. Those kind of minor, frustrating things that pop up and must be dealt with and solved and corrected. No one's health was in jeopardy. No one was hungry. The problems only lasted a day.

I just am pleased that my partner knows how to take care of stuff and does.

He is amazing.

Time to Shake Things up Around Here

See the new colors? This blog was looking soooo boring. Blah. Soft greens, greys, with a white background--BORING!!

Also, I think I might go buy a bunch of stuff today, just because.

I did go and buy a new cardigan that I wore at the homeschooling conference, and I think I might just throw off this yoke of oppression--this "We Don't Buy It" crap. Who needs that kind of limitation in life?! If I want to go out and get myself a little something, something, why not?!

I DESERVE IT!

Enjoy this April 1st.

I am Selling Out... Kind of...

I started this blog as a challenge for my family and myself to see if we could live in a simple way and not buy new things. I thought it would be interesting to see if we could live through the limits that The Compact would impose on us. I wondered what we would discover about ourselves and about our neighbors and the typical consumer lifestyle that we are all pressured to live. Would we be able to live a year without buying any things that are new? Would the kids feel out of step with other kids? Would I pine for anything? Would I chafe under the restriction?

My husband makes a good living *knocks on wood* and we have always lived fairly simply, but if I wanted to get a little something from Williams Sonoma I could have. If I felt like getting a Hanna Andersson outfit for my daughter, that was no problem. I ended up not doing that very much, because I ended up not buying very much for any of us, even before The Compact. It was an easy switch to make to just buying used things from Goodwill or the Salvation Army and we found lots of nice, gently used things from Eddie Bauer (for me), and The Gap and every other place I used to shop when the kids were little and I wasn't a bit concerned with them outgrowing their clothing in a 2 month time... That was a little frivolous of me, but the clothes were very cute and 100% cotton. I felt that was important for tender new skin.

I found all sorts of decent clothing that was perfectly good. It didn't matter to my kids, or me or my husband either, if things were a certain brand. The Compact would have been far more difficult if that had been the case, or if we had cared if things were part of a current trend. Trendy, we are not.

So The Compact has continued to be a part of our lifestyle. We have purchased new things and then I have confessed to you all right here on this blog. We've gotten a water heater and a manual lawn mower and shoelaces and goldfish and leotards and props for performances and new toys for the kids at museums and gifts for them at X-mas and at birthdays. We've gotten used things too, but we have not been pure, just very conscious about our purchases. We haven't really been frivolous.

I started this blog as a way of tracking our lifestyle and seeing how we progressed and then realized that if we weren't purchasing new things, I could show you what we were doing instead. If you don't buy it, what in the world do you do? For many people buying is a form of entertainment or even sport--the challenge of finding and then getting the great deal. On one of my April Fool's Day posts I put up a Google AdSense banner and explained that we would now be carrying ads. I wrote:

See the ads over there, at the top of my blog? They pay me to run them here. That's a good thing. Why wouldn't I want to make money here? What would be the possible point of making all of these posts? Really, I don't get it. People only do things for money. That's what makes the world go round. Why would I sit here writing things for no reason? If I'm not getting paid, what's the reason then? I'm not tracking on that, really.

That was a joke. I write here because I feel strongly about many issues and want to share what I know. I write here because I like to write and hope to share something good with others: political outrage, unschooling joy, ways to be healthy with raw milk, kefir, the seminal book Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon, my hilarious husband... My secret ambition is to be a paid writer somewhere, somehow. It would be ideal if it was on my terms wouldn't it?

I feel like when I grow up, this is what I'll do as an adult. And then I realize that I am grown up and I am a writer, of sorts. So, why not now? What the heck am I waiting for? As my father quoted Hillel to me when I was an emotional teenager, "If I am not for myself, who will be for me? If I am only for myself, what am I? If not now, when?" Sage words there.

So you know what? I am going to continue to write here and get money for my writing from having ads!! What?! "But, Laura, what about your whole 'We don't buy it. We're living on The Compact. We think new things are bad. We are holy and pure and think serious thoughts all of the time...' What about that stuff?!" you argue indignantly with me. Ah. I see your confusion and concern. Seems a little hypocritical doesn't it? Well, you are wrong! Wrong I tell you!! Because you know why? I'm going to have ads for stuff I believe in. Ha!

Food. Whole nutritious food! You have to eat, even on The Compact. I am a huge fan of kefir and kombucha, and yogurt, sourdough starter and dried foods that retain their enzymes and... and... and all of the stuff that Cultures for Health sells. So guess what. I am now an affiliate of their site and every sale that they make, linked from here at We Don't Buy It, I get paid for. Hurray!

I will now have some ads here. Also, I may have product giveaways. Have you ever wanted to try and make yogurt, or kefir, or sourdough bread? It can seem like a lot of work and it can seem overwhelming, but it's not if you have easy starters and quality ingredients. Maybe you'd like to try one out. Maybe you'll win a contest and get some for free and then you can.

I will review products too. I'll let you know what I think. (Yeah, that's a new one, because I've always been shy about sharing my opinions, haven't I?) *snort*

I am selling out sort of. But, as it turns out, not really.

Cool for Now

We are still mostly not buying it, that is to say, we are still trying to live with The Compact. As I have said before, we mostly still do. We mostly do not buy anything new. My husband buys lumber or screws and nails if he needs them. But, overall, we haven't and still don't buy new things. Which is not to say that we don't buy anything.

Today, for example, I went to our nifty new Salvation Army store and bought the kids a ginormous pile of clothes. They will now have t-shirts and shorts and my daughter will have dresses and both will have jeans without rips in the knees although that is a cool look, I will acknowledge.

I never achieved that look throughout my entire childhood. Firstly, I was in Sears Toughskins... those are not Levi's and you can't achieve any kind of cool look with those no matter how hard you try.

At the time, I had my own idea of what cool looked like so that was OK. I had chipped my front two teeth and had to wear silver caps for a year and a half in first and second grades and I knew, positively knew that I was cool because I could pretend to be Lindsay Wagner in The Bionic Woman. I was the bionic woman with my silver caps. I could cock my head to the side and have my super sonic hearing detect bad guys a mile away, the sun glinting off my silver caps. How much cooler could anyone get? So, Toughskins didn't matter then.

Later on in about 5th grade or so, I desperately wanted to have jeans that had rips in the knees. I finally got Levi's (this was before the Gloria Vanderbilt or Chic madness--that came later), but I was growing so quickly that my jeans never got worn through in the knees. They did become floods almost immediately, however.

It was only as an adult that I finally understood the taunt: "Hey Laura! Can you swim?" and then there would be uproarious laughter. "Of course I can swim!!", I'd angrily retort. Well, kids were asking me that because I was wearing floods--get it? Ah. I see. I think I was an easy target in a lot of ways. I don't think I got the nuanced communication that occurs on the playground.

Any way, today I got all sorts of clothes for the kids. Just as I didn't, my kids don't really understand "cool" either except through their own filters. They have very little brand recognition. They have some, but they're more likely to think something is cool because of its color or what its made of, than because it's part of a giant merchandising juggernaut like Hannah Montana or Disney or even Abercrombie and Fitch.

My kids don't really have a uniform. They don't know they must wear this or that to be cool. They know they are cool because my son can do a headstand for minutes on end and my daughter can adopt a spot on English accent.

It's not The Bionic Woman, but what could be cooler than that these days?

Earth Day...Wait, That's EVERY Day!

I have a bit of a problem with Earth Day. While I think it's good to raise awareness and hopefully bring into people's consciousness the idea that we are connected to the earth and responsible to it, I still have a problem with how it is celebrated and why it is celebrated.

Every day is the earth's day. Every day we could be conscious of our connection to Nature and to be mindful of our place in it. To celebrate the earth on one day, and then possibly go back to buying things we don't need, and driving our gas guzzling hummers and giant SUVs, strikes me as being ironic and a bit obscene.

Earlier this week, a friend of ours recently went to buy a new washing machine--theirs was broken and irreparable. They went to an appliance store and were greeted with a presentation of animals from a nearby nature preserve--snakes, turtles, etc. It was great fun for them and their kids. They also got pins that the store was handing out showing how the store was celebrating Earth Day.

IRONY ALERT! *woot* *woot* *woot* *alarm sounds*

Do you hand out a thing to celebrate Earth Day?! A thing that will advertise your store, but that no one will wear, because kids don't really relish the marketing efforts of local appliance stores, and it will be quickly discarded and therefore it will end up in a landfill tout de suite.

I don't like when companies try to green their products or their marketing. It's cynical and false.

Instead of giving you a thing, I'm going to celebrate Earth Day today with you now by showing you the robin nest building going on in my backyard. Nature at work.

Look:

A robin is trying to build a nest on top of our completely ignored bird house at our living room window. A house with a pitched roof...

Wow. That's a lot of material up there.

But, not much of it is wedged behind. Do you think it will slide off?

Uh oh...

See all of those dried grasses in the center of the above photo with a green leaf on top? That all used to be on top of the birdhouse. Hopefully, the birds will try again and it will work out this time...

Yep, they are trying again.

Hey, that's looking better.

It looks like there's more plant material wedged between the window and the back of the birdhouse. That ought to keep it from slipping off this time.

Hello green canoe without an opossum living in it! Currently...As far as we know...

You should be proud, robin. That is a fabulous nest you've built. Take a bow, or stand there while I quickly try to get a photo of you.

Look at that nest! Look at all of the mud you've added--very stable. That's not going any where.

Are there any eggs yet? Let's take a quick peek, while you are off somewhere else.

No. No eggs yet, but we will check whenever you and your mate aren't around, so as to not freak you out.

Nicely done, Mother Nature. Beautiful work, robins.

Happy Earth Day everyone!

I Must Confess

In addition to all of my questioning about the efficacy, safety and necessity of vaccines, I am still conscious of stuff, or the lack thereof. We still are not buying it...except when I have. So, I confess.

My recent purchases have been food related though, so I'm giving myself a little wiggle room on those ones. Well, on one of them, the other one I didn't need.

This first purchase addresses a health issue and I have been keeping my eye out for anything remotely similar at Goodwill or any other resale shop I have frequented for the last year and a half--no luck. So, a few days ago, I broke down and bought some of these:

These are pyrex glass food storage containers to contain all of the leftovers that I create. I don't want to use the plastic ones that I have.

I basically no longer use the microwave (I just heat coffee in there) and I never did heat food in plastic in it. I know that plastic leaches into the food and I didn't want that in my husband, or myself or my kids. What I didn't realize was that it kind of leaches always. It's not uber stable. But, glass is.

OK I say fair enough on that purchase. But, then we went to the fantastic store, American Science and Surplus in Chicago (they also have an online catalog here) where I bought the kids some Harry Potter physics kits--we already have done some of the exercises--it's difficult to find the center of gravity when you make homemade mobiles out of thin dowels and circles of cardstock. That was a fine purchase. The kids were also allowed to get whatever they wanted with their own money. Prudent, and frankly imprudent, spending are both great lessons at this age. "Are you sure you want the giant squishy worm thingy that is offgassing and so I won't let you take it into the house, but you may enjoy it on the porch?" Yes, my daughter answered. "Is this really what you'd like to buy?", I asked my son. "Yes. I really want it." And so the chicken chucker is now languishing on the computer desk after it broke on the second day of ownership. Who knew that a chicken chucker could be a delicate thing?

I bought myself a coffee mug--an exact duplicate of one I already have, as my husband pointed out--but, I just couldn't resist. It has the store's name on it and its catch phrase, "Incredible stuff, unbelievable prices!" It announces when it was established ("Est. About 1937"), and I just love that it's vague. You know, 1937ish. And above the name is hovering an optimistic guy who is wearing a Da Vinci-like helicopter strapped to his back. His arms are outstretched and he is flying as if he's in a hanglider. It's so hopeful and creative. So, I bought it.

I confess.

It's All Been a Joke--Suckers!

God are you guys push overs! Again, you have fallen for my ruse here. This is all a joke. I don't really not buy new things--that would be impossible!!

I've been pulling your legs. I buy new stuff all of the time. I get things on sale, I get full priced things--it doesn't matter. I just love to shop and feel I deserve whatever I can get. Doesn't everyone?!

Who would espouse such a hard way of life? Who would actually suggest that Americans, Americans (!) should deny themselves anything?

Aren't we in hard economic times now?? Don't we need to spend our way out of it? If people stop spending, won't that put all sorts of people out of work? It's not the behavior of the guys at the top that have messed up this economy--no, it's people who have slowed down their buying.

Come on people. Step up. I don't really care about my neighbors and the larger community any more than you do--selfishness is really self-interestedness--there's a difference! But, if you buy for yourself, you're really helping someone else too. It's a win, win...win.

So, on this April Fool's Day, I want you to think about what junk you can go out and buy today. Maybe you're in difficult economic straits yourself. You can still buy a blouse you really don't need. Just go charge it. You can still go out and buy the scented candle on sale that you'll throw out in 6 months 'cause it doesn't burn evenly, and now looks ugly. Those things don't have to cost too much.

The point is I think you should go buy, buy, buy! Oh, and while you're at it, eat a lot of junk filled with chemicals and mercury tainted corn syrup and genetically modified corn starch. That doesn't effect health and it tastes soooo good! Also, I think you should slather on a bunch of sunscreen and not let the sun touch you at all.

Follow every piece of conventional medical advice--even though it might not make a lot of sense when seen through the perspective of evolution or history or anthropological norms around the world. Just blindly follow what the doctors say...

And speaking of experts, I think I'll enroll my kids in school today, because I'm not a trained teacher--how can I possibly educate my kids?! They're not learning enough about bullying or arbitrary institutional rules that serve only the flow of group management and have nothing to do with learning. My kids should learn at this tender age about red tape and busy work and a dulling of their curiosity. It's sink or swim kids! That's how the world works and you're not learning enough of that here in the confines of your loving home. It's off to school with the two of you.

Daughter, you can no longer grab your Harry Potter book and read it for however long you want in the morning. You can't have a playdate with Unnamed's kids in the middle of the day while I take Son to a lesson. Son, you can no longer build robots from kits your grandparents bought you for Christmas. No--go learn things on the school's timetable and in the school's way.

I've been joking around about my concern about pollution and ice caps melting too...It's fine! The world has been around for millions of years, billions of years, only 6,000 years (Hello young earthers! Nice of you to visit my blog!!). How arrogant of us to think that we are actually affecting the very climate of the earth! Besides, lots of religions feel it's all in God/Allah/Jesus's hands. Don't worry!! Let God take care of it. We are nothing and as the nothing beings we are, we really should not care about pollution or anything having to do with ecology.

If there's an eminent domain issue where a development company wants to build a mall and they need to knock down the last habitat of a mouse or a butterfly or an owl, I say "When will the mall be open and where's the nearest Forever21 store!!!"

You see what my true feelings are here. I've just been kidding. I want everyone to do whatever makes them happy because isn't that the best thing we can all do for oursleves? If everyone is happy, would there really be wars? Would there?? So, ultimately, if I worry about the soldiers still in Iraq, it doesn't help to end the war. Whereas if I shop, then I will be happy and that will help the world be more peaceful and then that will end the war. See??

Whatever...

The point here is to just go buy and not worry your little heads about things. "We Don't Buy It" now buys everything: stuff, mainstream ideas about health, ideas from women's magazines about how we should look as women, commercials that show us what products we should use to wash ourselves, our homes, our kids (what's a little formaldehyde in bath products?...afterall it's in vaccines...dont' you think they would've taken it out if it causes cancer or something...oh, they don't test if it does...well, any way what's a little formaldehyde??). We're not questioning anything else around here any more. Who am I to question anything?! Where do I get off?!

Have a happy day shopping today. Enjoy your various swiffer products! Just use 'em and throw them out--what could be easier??

Be happy. Shop...

You're Going to Make What?!, or Why There are Two Parents...

I heard my son and husband talking very animatedly in the kitchen the other day. "Yeah!! mumble, mumble...OK! Yeah, that would be great!! mumble, mumble." I didn't catch it all, but they sounded very happy.

Later, I asked my son what they were talking about. Somehow I thought geometry was involved. I thought I had heard my husband saying something about angles.

"Dad and I were talking about how we're going to build a big trebuchet." "How big?", I asked nervously. "Oh, about 8 feet--it's going to be great!!", my son told me very enthusiastically. Huh. 8 feet. That sounds powerful.

I won't build 8 foot trebuchets. Not only that, but when my kids were babies, I didn't toss them above my head and catch them. No, I cradled them gently in my arms and sang them lullabies. And, I didn't wrestle them in the bed--at least not as long as my husband was around. I nursed them back to sleep laying next to me. Also, I have not introduced my little children to power drills or power sanders as my husband has. Instead, I've given them homemade play dough scented with lavender oil, and several different types of crayons.

My husband and I have different approaches around here--and both are necessary for our kids. Thank God for a crazy father who will toss the kids, wrestle, help them help him build stuff, and this summer, build a giant trebuchet.

Does our park allow 8 foot trebuchets? It won't let the neighborhood dogs take a walk...

We Like to Surprise Our Kids

We like to surprise our kids. Sometimes I get something from Goodwill or from somewhere and I just casually put it on the couch in the living room after the kids have gone to bed. The next day, at some point, the kids discover it and get excited about it (usually, although not always), and we do it together or read it. Extra origami paper has ended up there. New plastic animals. Books. Strewing works well around here.

We also like to surprise our kids with activities. Before our homeschooling group formed, and we were just in a small playgroup with other homeschoolers, I had what I called--ready for some great alliteration here?--Field Trip Fridays!! I would take the kids to a new place every week. Sometimes it was to local libraries or nature preserves, and sometimes it meant drives further afield into Chicago to museums or to Dave's Rock Shop in Evanston. The kids loved not knowing. It added to the thrill of it all. They loved guessing where we might be going--and it didn't matter where we ended up. It was all wonderful.

Today we're going to go to a movie! The kids don't know it. Ha ha ha ha! I still love to surprise them and they still love to be surprised. It's playful and the kids don't get dissappointed if something falls through and we can't get to somewhere we were planning on going. If we tell them and then it falls through, they are really crushed. These are enthusiastic, feeling kids I have here. The ups are way up and the downs are way down. They emote too. They don't just keep it all to themselves and simmer. No. They let it out. No one will ever have to figure out their mood--it is written in their faces and bodies and language and tone of voice and demeanor--crystal clear.

I think they will love the movie. Shhhh! Don't tell...

You Must Have Patience, Grasshopper

Over a year ago, I posted about getting useless junk mail. I used to get tons of it every day and then I started removing myself from the catalogs' mailing lists. My friend Unnamed had told me about the site Catalog Choice where you can enter in your request to be removed from the mailing lists and then you won't receive those catalogs any more.

Slowly, bit by bit, I received fewer and fewer catalogs every day. It is a mere trickle now. However, the other day I got a notice from Lands End saying they were just then removing me from their list. It has been a year. And, I might still receive some catalogs already in the pipeline.


They suggest that I might appreciate their e-mail newsletter instead. No, that's OK, thanks.

Everything comes to those who wait. Or, in this case, doesn't come any more.

Slumdog Millionaire

Over the weekend, I visited my sister and parents up in Madison. My sister D. and I had a girls' night out and went out to a theater to see Slumdog Millionaire. It is beautifully filmed, wonderfully acted and filled with despairing scenes of slum life and little kids working in the garbage dumps in Mumbai. I cried at those scenes the most--more so than the plot line, which also moved me to tears. I wanted the characters to survive and then I wanted them to succeed.

I left the theater wondering if those scenes could have accurately depicted the harsh reality of the Mumbai slums. Was it real?

Looks real to me...





Here's a short film with real kids just like those depicted in Slumdog Millionaire. This looks real to me too...

Write to Your People to Stop the CPSIA

If we want to stop the good intentioned but seriously flawed and poorly worded CPSIA, we need to make some noise. Below is a sample letter that I got from the Handmade Toy Alliance. You can sign their petition and you can copy this letter and send it to your Representative and Senators. It's easy to do and the more the powers that be get messages like this one, the more responsive they will be.

Thanks for getting active.

From: [your name and address]

To: [your congress person or senator]

Re: The Consumer Product Improvement Act (CPSIA) will result in a drastic deepening of the economic crisis

Dear [your congress person or senator],

The economic crisis in our country is distressing to millions of Americans. That is why it concerns me that under the CPSIA, many small business owners will be driven out of business, deepening the crisis. The premise of self reliance and entrepreneurship on which this country was founded is in jeopardy.

Like many people, I was deeply concerned by the dangerous and poisonous toys that large Chinese toy manufacturers have been selling to our families. And, I was pleased that Congress acted quickly to protect America's children by enacting the CPSIA.

However, I am very concerned that the CPSIA's mandates for third party testing and labeling will have a dramatic and negative effect on small businesses whose safety record has always been exemplary. It will devastate small manufacturers and home businesses who create children's products such as clothes, handmade goods and toys for children, beautiful Native American artifacts, children's books, adaptive products for children with disabilities, and classroom and homeschool materials. These small businesses simply cannot afford the $300-$4,000 price tag per product that Third Party testers are charging.

With the economic crisis we find ourselves in, fewer families will be able to afford the higher costs of the goods that remain available. Any company that is able to remain in business will undoubtedly raise prices due to increased compliance costs. Everyone will have to pay more for the remaining available goods, deepening the effects of the economic crisis for millions of families.

I urge you to quickly request the Consumer Product Safety Commission to make some very reasonable exclusions in their interpretation of the law as they continue their rulemaking process. These include exempting books and uncoated fabrics from testing and allowing manufacturers to rely upon testing done by their materials suppliers instead of paying for redundant unit-based testing. I would also like to see an exemption to third party testing requirements for micro-businesses similar to the exemptions granted by the FDA for small producers under the food labeling laws. As the Wall Street Journal wrote, "The Commission needs to implement the rules without putting more companies out of business in an already tenuous economy."

These toy makers, crafters, publishers and small home based businesses have earned and kept the public's trust. They provide jobs for thousands and quality playthings and educational products for hundreds of thousands. Their unique businesses should be protected. Please visit www.handmadetoyalliance.org to learn more about this issue.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

[your name]

I've Discovered Photoshop

My husband designs things for a company. Yes, things. Stuff. But, the stuff he designs is of a good quality and is ultimately used by creative people to make their own stuff. Not all stuff is bad. His stuff could be handed down to a whole new generation of stuff-users. Really, it could.

This is how we've come to have Photoshop here in our house. And now I have my brother-in-law's hand-me-down camera so I've been discovering what I can do when I combine snow, a digital SLR camera and Photoshop.

Look what I did yesterday:

This series I call, Bikes Left on Back Porch Even Though it's the Winter.

Here's a set I like to call, Evergreen Shrub on Back Porch.

Here's a shot I have named, Underside of Metal Porch Chair: Could be a Twin to a Victor Vasarely Print



Look:



See? Twins.



These are my Twigs and Plants series. I think they've turned out nicely.







Back to basics with Logs.








This one is called, I've Come Unhinged.





Here's a little something I like to call Desaturation Black and White Tree Mombo





And finally, Good Fences make Good neighbors.

But, do you think that's true? Do good fences make good neighbors? Does it depend on who is controlling the fence? What if some want to go the other side--what then?

The Ultimate Field Trip

I'm getting more and more nervous as I'm trying to get us all ready for our trip to...Mexico!! My Mother-in-law has invited all of the family on my husband's side to go down with her to Cancun. Who are we to refuse such an offer? I might be buying new things down there--we'll see. As it is, in getting ready for the trip, I got a sheer, flowey blouse--great with a skirt or shorts--a kicky colorful printed skirt, a simple cotton brown wrap dress all from Goodwill. I felt very lucky to find things that will work, and they will work! I had to get a pair of sandals as my leather strappy sandals that I did have finally broke and I think that with the cost of the repair, it would make more sense to buy a new pair. So, I did.

I had those sandals for at least 20 years. I bought them from J. Crew back when I bought things from J. Crew and they were very well made and lasted me for all of those years. They were a classic hippy design that didn't go out of style in that it was so not trendy it could be classic. My look.

The area we're going to is not far from Mayan ruins--the kids are getting very excited. We're going to go there, we're going to explore the jungle, we're going to hang out on the beach for days. It will be extraordinarily decadent and exactly the kind of place that I find appalling. We'll be staying at a resort area full of demanding Americans who can't speak a lick of Spanish, lo siento. And where we will be, there is no "there" there. We will be surrounded by other resorts and no towns or locals or museums or interesting street life. We will be segregated from reality.

It will be a wonderful time with our relatives and we will all have fun in the sun and climbing the ruins and exploring the jungle. I love my mother-in-law for being so generous in this. So, that's what I'm going to think about and enjoy while we're there. I won't think about the incredible waste and arrogance of going to another country and then setting yourself up in a compound separated from the very people who inhabit the country you've gone to visit; especially a country where there is so much poverty and corruption.

Lolling on the beach for days is good. Playing with my kids in the pools is good. Visiting with relatives is good. Decadent ugly American behavior is bad, and embarrassing.

When I get back from our trip, I'll see how my kefir grains are gowing and I'll start sending them out to people who've requested them. Tamsen, I got your info--thanks.

I've got a new-to-me/hand-me-down camera for Christmas and I'll take lots of pictures while I'm there. I've already taken a few pictures here around the house, but I need a new cord to get them onto the computer. When I get a used cord from somewhere, I'll get more photos on here.