Application

I am so exited... I just filled out my application with D-Trois-Pierres in order to get a basket per week for 20 weeks of locally, organically grown vegetables!!!  Yummy!!!!  It will be many different kinds of vegetables.... some I never even try...  or had no idea what they could be used for! But now that I have become a "chef" and really like to try out new stuff, it will be a great challenge...  on the web site, you can also find recipes if there is something you have no idea what to do with...

My husband asked me to promise him to not throw out any vegetables that I would receive...  so this will imply sometimes asking you guys what to do with something....  or looking it up... or perhaps giving out some... either raw or already prepared... my husband and I do not eat much as most of you know and in my small flat, there is not much room to store food.... cooked or not!!!

Obviously, 1kg of vegetable is not that much for a whole week if it is well diversify... since we have a plant base diet! But send me 1kg of zucchini and I will have ot become very creative!

So you guys can do the same... look it up in your region and see what it available... I am getting my stuff from Cap St-Jacques... they deliver close to my house but also on Ile-Bizard, and in Rosemont for eg....  so look it up and it might be someting you guys would lilke to do!

Here's the link:

http://www.d3pierres.com/content.asp?node=46

The mall

This Sunday, I had to go to the Apple store.. I had been postponing this moment but my son got an iPod for X-mas and he needed a charger so that I did not have to keep my computer open all the time...  and bring it everywhere...  I am not that attached to my computer...

So 23 days not buying anything... for a shopaholic of my type, this is huge!!! And I was going to the mall... I was afraid I would give in...  but I reassure you, I did not...

To start of, we went to Renaud-Bray, then Apple store and then we decided to shop around and we ended up entering ALL our favorite stores...  and not buying anything... even thus I had a gift certificate on hands...
When I left I was pretty much exausted... and I felt deprive of the right to buy something... but when I got home 15 minutes later, I actually felt pretty good and realized that there was nothing that I really wanted....  or could not do without...

So only 24 days down the line but I already feel like this experiment is going to change me forever....  Plus all this time not shopping, trust me, it is actually more per week then some people do in a season, has opened my horizon... I am knitting, reading, cooking, coming up with sewing ideas, and I even finished a collage that I have been wanting to finish for months.... I even framed it and place it in my leaving room... I am also spending more time on my yoga... 

This is very stimulating and my creativity, which I always had but was asleep for years, is all coming back to me.... and I feel alive and full of project!!! And I see thing differently...        

"Je lève mon verre"

This is my new favourite song... it's by William Deslauriers.  It basically is "let's drink to that" and it talks about how we are abusing this planet we live on...  how we are pushing the limits and heading toward a place which may not be so much fun if we do not change...  but it is a huge message of hope...  the song says that he is trying to change things...  that there is hope that we will find a solution... and he "lève son verre" to those people who are trying to make a difference... trying to get back to a nicest place to live... where our kids can find trees, water, less corruption, world peace...  there should be no "borders"... after all we are all humans...   and we should all help each other... 

If I was able to sing (and this is the one thing I cannot do!), this is probably the song I would have like to be written for me...  it sums up what I am trying to do... leave hope, try to change this place.... and all you guys who are regularly reading this blog and asking questions and showing interest in what we are doing are great!!!  It shows you care!!!

here's the link to a video of the song... 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23iU7kJnpRg

enjoy!
"je lève mon verre" to all of you my friends!!!
  

'greed is a bottomless pit that tires a person trying to satisfy a need without ever reaching satisfaction'

This quotation is from Erin Fromm.  I came cross it in my "Green is the new black" book which I just finish reading... 

There are so many informations in this book... and I still haven't process every little bit of it...  but this quotation with which the book starts or almost is amazing...  It pin point exactly why I use to shop so much...  (notice the use of the past tense?  because for 18 days I have not done it... getting close to the 21 days required to create a new behavior or get rid of an old one!)  I would shop to satisfy needs I tought I had... only to realize that I ended up wanting more... and still not be happy about what I had...

Now where to start and where to end is not an easy question...

I guess the first step anyone should do is declutter... that is, reserve a few hours over the next week end... look at all the clothes, shoes, accessories you have in every closet... or suitcase...  for every season...  including bathing suit, socks and underwear...

Go on and make a few pîles:

1) still wear
2) need fixing
3) to give out because I no longer will wear it... it no longer fits or it was an impulse buy for example...
4) to throw out because fixing or giving are not even appropriate - which is an extremely rare case... I mean you need to have major damage in either one of those cases.... even a 15 year old blouse in good condition that you think no one will want will make a person really happy somewhere!!!
5) to keep to refashion into something else

Now, what ever needs fixing needs to be fix ASAP...  or it goes in one of the other piles...

What ever you wish to give out, hold on for now as I am planning on doing a swapping something later on this year... probably in May! If this interest you.. if not please give them away to those who need them....

Now you should be left with clothes you like...  and wear...  did you know that 80% of the time we wear only 20% of what we own???  that is defenitley not much...  so what should remain after this grand clean up should be about the 20% you really wear plus a few items you rarely wear but really like and are useful!

I did this exercise last time I move in August... and it was worth while...   

Green is the new black - how to change the world with style

I bought this book at Chapters at lunch time...  In my previous post, I said that books were to be discussed...  but this one is essential...  if I am going to spend a year without getting new clothes or almost none...  which compare to the last 10 years of my life is a huge difference...  I still wanna do it in a stylish way.. my style obviously!   I wanna show people that this can be fun and creative...  not a punishment...  or else no one will wanna get even remotely close to trying it...  so it would defeat the purpose!!! If I wanna change this world, I need to show people that is can be fun, intersting, challenging and enjoyable...  so I will go throught this book and let you know what this is about... 
Subject to be find in the books include thrift stores, knitting, 5$ jeans, organic cotton, purses and bags,ethical jewelry...
but it also made me think about modifying my clothes, modifying other people clothes that they no longer want, sewing, swapping...  etc and I will probably come up with more ideas...

So I will start this book and figure out what my next year will be like clothes wise...   The main idea is to save raw materials from being manufacture... hence save this wonderful planet we live on!  So by using what I already own or what other people use to own, I do not demand any more raw materials...  and secondly, I will save money!!! (for a future project...)

What is essential?

One week down the road...  this post is inspired by a comment a friend of mine told me when I came across her at Starbucks this morning... and also by other comments or discussions or questions my husband and I had over the last week.

The comment was "Do you really need that coffee?"  And it made me think about it of course... And it just made me realize that what is essential may not be the same to all...  To some having a big house and a nice car, drinking the finest wine, going on nice trips far far away, buying a Gucci purse, fine jewelry or the latest perfume is essential...  For others, have a winter coat, finding chucked away perfeclty eatible food and be able to take a shower one in a blue moon is esential...  

I am not judging....  this is what is essential to THEM at that point in their life... There is nothing wrong with that per say....  Now the true questions is, what is essential to Real and I....  this is what we should go with since we made that new years resolution...  
In order for us to establish what is essential we had to ask ourselves what do we want from life?  Why are we doing this?
We want to be healthy, respect the environment (that includes everything that is on this earth... be it living or not) and we want to leave a better place on earth for our kids and all their friends and the friends of their friends and so on... 
Now all this started a few years ago with us going yoga and mediation because we both needed it for different reasons... and we stated reading books on a bunch of different subjects... meditation books, yoga books, self development books, environment books...  John Robbins, Dr Dyer, Ghandi, Bouddha, Alicia Silverstone, Skinny bitch, Dominique Loreau, Marcia Pilote, David Sukuki are some of the peoples who's book we've read and that inspired us to name a few...  

So in reponse to all these books, we started by being vegetarian, then increase our yoga/meditation/reiki practice, stop taking medication of any kind, then we started eating less, and more organic, whole grains, less fast foods and junk foods...  then use the car less and less... so what we think is one of the things left for us to do is look at all the stuff we buy and the impact on the environment... the bigest problems was clothes... obviously we were buying a lot and ended up not wearing all of them and give it away to buy more... we were not putting it in the garbage at least!!!  So the main goal of this year is targeted toward clothes... we have more then plenty in our wardrobe to last a year or even a few years... and by doing this for a year, we are concious that it will make us question all the stuff we buy and create a new way of life...  that is more eco friendly...  and hopefully inspire others to at least think... sometimes about what they buy...

So what we will not question, because for US it is essential is:

1) Yoga/mediation/reiki stuff (except for yoga clothes which no one really needs since all you need is to be confortable to do yoga or meditation)
2) Organic food
3) Our regular chai lattes at Starbucks - consider part of our meals
4) Knitting stuff for my stitch n'bitch club - because I co-founded the club...  and I have no intention of doing only the bitching part
5) Bicycle stuff since this should become our main tranportation mode for the nicer months ( then again that excludes clothes specifically design for that since they are not really essential)
6) Our bi-annual retreat at Spa Eastman - part of our well being
7) Our monthly visit at Spa Finlandais - also part of our well being

Now for what we will systematically question includes, clothes, shoes, jewelry, CD/DVS, books, going to the movies, trips, restaurants, taking the car...  at least this is how we see it for now... we will see if this changes over time and of course you guys will be the first one to know!!!

Thanks to all of you who made us think about this and realize the we had not set clear boundaries...

Spring fashion

Today, I had to do a quick stop at the mall to pick up some pants I had shortened... since heals no longer agree with me!
Bad idea... it was not easy....  I did not come close to buy anything... did not even got to try something on...  but spring stuff is coming out!!!  Spring is my favorite season and shopping season...  I love what they put out for spring... flowery stuff...  colors are nice... announces the end of cold months asking us to put on layer on top of layer on top of more layers...  so it was not an easy 20 minutes but I managed... 
And who am I kidding... spring is not my only favorite season, I also lover fall and summer...  of course spring comes first...  but aside from winter, I love all the other season... and their clothes!!!  so it will not get any easier as the next winter stuff shoul not be there before mid october... so I am in for a rough ride...  I am sure I will pull it through thus...  with the help of the love of my life...

So this is the update for now...
Stay tune!
And if you do read this blog and are interested in following me over my next year, please sign in as a follower... it would be nice for me to see some support and have people comment on all my stupidities!!!  :)

p.s. basically I felt like a recovering alcoholic in a bar!

Day 3

only day 3... still easy....  we went to the mall this morning because I had a gift to exchange.. did not buy anything else...  but we had a discussion on what is "essential"???  we do not wanna go overboard either...  but we are thinking that we do not need furniture, kitchen stuff, clothes, jewelry... that we can do with what we have... unless all our underwear are stolen in the laundry room...  ;)  but I know this is very unlikely...  now, lets assume we tear a white shirt by accident... (we already concluded that doing this purposely would not allow us to buy another shirt!) but we have another white shirt...  are 2 white shirts essential?  do we get to replace any worn out piece of clothing or we wait untill we have nothing else to wear? where do we draw the line?  what if it can be fix?  I would think, you get it fix... in order not to use more raw material... 

now, comes the food subject... restaurant are surely not essential...  but eating is...  not the whole purpose of doing this is to use less ressources from mother earth...  so eating is eating... assuming we do not pig out becasue we are dining out...  waht about desert?  chocolate bars? this surely is not essentail... but then again, it is food... I do not think having desert occasionnaly would be as much detrimental to mother earth as buying hundreds of dollars of clothes every month???

what do you guys think???  where would you draw the line???    

Happy 2011!

Hello to all..  I am starting this blog because my husband and I made a crazy new year resolution...  We comitted to not buying anything for ourselves unless it is absolutely necessary...  I will keep you guys posted on how this is coming along with this blog...  obvioulsy, you will find more subjects than just this one...  or else there would not be much to say!!!
In the hope of keeping you interested...