Cheap, Non-Chemically, DIY Body Care (aka, Baking Soda is Magic)

There are many reasons I don't like store-bought shampoos, deodorants, soaps, creams, and other bodycare products.  Even the "natural" ones, though mostly better than your average pharmacy brands, have chemicals I'd really rather not use, and also tend to be really pricey!  I decided a while ago that there must be better options, and I'm slowly but surely going DIY for all of the products I used to buy from the store.

Recently, I've been discovering more and more things that baking soda (only about $1 a box) can be used for.  And used very effectively, no less!  So I wanted to share a few of them that I've tried so far:

Shampoo (or, Going No 'Poo, as people often say)

I used to use Kiss My Face shampoos, which worked just like your general shampoos, minus *most* of the more harmful chemicals.  The downside?  High cost (about $10 a bottle), and it left my hair dry, so I needed to use their conditioner regularly as well.  So when I started hearing (reading, really) about this no 'poo thing online, I became interested.  Could this be the answer I was looking for?  So I decided to try it out.  I mean really, what was there to lose?  If it worked, great, and if it didn't, I could just go back to regular shampoo!  Usising various online place as guides, I stopped using shampoo late last September (2009), and have been no 'poo since then! 

After a bit of trial-and-error, I discovered that around 2-3 teaspoons of baking soda dissolved in a spritzy bottle with 1 cup of water works perfectly.  Most people talk about how there's a "transitioning period" when you first make the switch, but I didn't even find that the case with me!  The baking soda method, right from the start, worked just as well as conventional shampoo.  I pour small quantities of this mixture on to each part of my scalp, massaging my scalp with fingertips and nails as I go, let it sit for about a minute, then rinse it out.  I know that many people like to use a diluted apple cider vinegar rinse afterward as a conditioner, but I've personally found that it just makes my hair get greasy faster.

As for how frequently I wash my hair: when I first switched to baking soda I used the same schedule as I had with shampoo, which means I was washing every other day.  But I quickly started stretching the time between washes, knowing that it was healthier for my hair, and have been washing my hair about every five days for a while now.

Toothpaste

Now traditional toothpaste has a LOT of not-so-pleasant ingredients!  I always feel uncomfortable using it.  So I've tried making my own toothpaste using baking soda, salt, and vanilla extract (for flavoring.  I feel like peppermint would be better, but I didn't have that extract in the house!).  My feelings on it have been mixed.  It works reasonably well, but my mouth just doesn't feel as clean as when I use regular toothpaste.  Maybe I just need to make a homemade mouthwash as well?  My experimentation with healthier tooth care is definitely not over, but lately I'm afraid to say that I have been using normal toothpaste most of the time...

Deodorant

My most recent experiment: homemade deodorant!  I used chemically deodorant for years, then for the past several years I've used mainly the health food store alternatives.  But I've never found any of them to work particularly well (not that it's usually much of a problem, since I don't tend to be a very stinky gal at all [note that I'm not even going to go into the whole why-is-it-a-bad-thing-that-people-smell-like-people thing, though I definitely have a lot of feelings on that]), especially the natural brands, which sort of work for a couple of weeks before they stop working entirely.  So when I found this recipe, I decidely immediately to try it!  I've only used it a couple of times, but I can happily say that so far it works better than any "natural" OR chemically deodorant I've ever used!  And I've seriously put it to test with lots of exercise and long hours of wear.  Seriously impressive!  Just rub a little bit of oil (I use olive oil with a drop of tea trea oil) on armpits after showering, then dab on a bit of baking soda.  Couldn't be simpler!

I know that baking soda is healthy for your body.  However, I haven't been able to find out whether its production is harmful to the environment or not, so if you know anything about that, I'd love to hear it! 

I'd also love to hear what you use for body care.  Do you buy regular stuff?  Maybe get your products from the local health food store?  Do you make your own?  Don't use any?  It always seems that in the comment sections on posts about homemade stuff people have plenty of interesting tips, tricks, and experiences to share, so I'd love to hear yours!

Food=Love

I have a longstanding love affair with food.  As horribly cliche as that sounds, it's pretty true!

To me, food is something fascinating and fun and exciting.  I love trying new things, looking at food and eating in new ways, and playing with eating different diets (and when I say "diet", I mean it in the lets-try-a-new-way-of-eating way, not the I'm-trying-to-lose-weight way).  I adore fresh foods (I was delighted when my mother brought home organic snap peas on Saturday, that she picked from the vines herself!), healthy and organic stuff, food from different cultures...

I tend to go in cycles in terms of cooking more and eating better, versus cooking less and eating worse.  I start to feel not so great, get tired of the boring stuff I've been eating, and realize that I need to cook more.  I start cooking a lot more, and feeling better and more excited about food again, before I start slowly slacking off...  I'm currently in the stage of realizing the food I've been eating isn't making me feel so good, so starting to cook again!

Yesterday I spent the afternoon in the sun, watching my sister march in a parade with one of her highland bands.  The food that was served there was your usual hot dogs and hamburgers, so I ate a couple veggie (soy) burgers there, despite the fact that those are definitely not on my list of foods that makes me feel good, or even on a list of foods I particularly like (I was hungry, okay?)!  But when I got home, I decided that I wanted to eat something healthy, and also something grain free.  So I fried an egg (seasoned with herbs) in coconut oil, then heaped steamed kale and baby garlic on top of it.  A bit of salt sprinkled on top, and voila!  Healthy, grain free, and not too bad on the taste buds. 

Since I was still hungry after that, instead of turning to my usual snacks of grain based foods, I ate a bunch of the aforementioned snap peas then baked some carrots with coconut oil and a bit of brown sugar.  Vegetables for the win!

What we eat has a HUGE impact on our overall health and well being.  It affects how much we get sick and how long it takes to get better; it affects our moods and emotional well-being; how much energy we have and how well we sleep...  What we put into our bodies affects everything.  And for different people, different  ways of eating are needed!  Which is why I like playing with my diet.  I love seeing what changes I see in myself from changing what I eat.

My newest food experiment is the no-grains thing.  I've been reading interesting stuff about grains, and how they probably shouldn't be such a dietary staple for so many people.  I want to go entirely grain free for a week once SMUG passes (I'm way too busy until then!), which should be interesting!

Other ways of eating I want to try at some point are a sugar free diet (processed sugar, not foods with natural sugar), a dairy free diet, a paleo diet (minus the meat), and eating raw food more regularly.  Maybe eating entirely raw one day a week?  The possibilities are virtually endless, and when food is looked at as something interactive and interesting, it's also genuinely fun!

Peace,
Idzie

P.S. Sorry I've been a bit neglectful of this blog, and that this post might be not so hot!  Life has been busy, and inspiration for blog posts has been virtually non-existent.  Hopefully that will change soon!

Guest Post: My Suburban, Backyard, Food Revolution...Sort Of

I'm thrilled to present the first ever guest post on this blog!!  In this post, Genevieve shares her adventures in being part of the Food Revolution, also known more simply as having your own veggie garden! ;-) I give you:

My Suburban, Backyard, Food Revolution...Sort Of

I think the fact that I live in the suburbs (of Montreal) still surprises me, even though I’ve been here for almost 6 years. I’ve always felt strongly about issues regarding the environment and peace, but most recently, and perhaps most of all, food. I mention this because suburbia never seemed like the place I could live with a clean conscience with regards to the environment and food. But after university and living in and around downtown for four years, I needed green space (read: yard), clean air and wanted to be closer to the schools where I would be teaching (another story altogether).

So after buying a house and spending time making it our own, we (my partner and I) thought we should spend some time on the yard. So how do you ‘green’ suburbia? Slowly we got rid of some of our lawn, planted perennials and built, drum roll please...raised vegetable beds! For me, it felt like a revolution was happening in my own backyard. I felt empowered and I was really going to stick it to the proverbial ‘man’. However, that first year, the vegetable garden wasn’t quite the picture of success we had imagined (we really didn’t know what we were doing), though we did harvest tomatoes, beans and lots of various lettuces. In subsequent years, we varied the types of seeds we sowed and focused mainly on heirloom and organic ones. Thankfully, our harvest has been slightly better every year since.

Then, almost 2 years ago, I got pregnant with not one, but two wee ones. So, as you can imagine, last summer’s garden was virtually non-existent (the kids being about 6 mths old at the time), though I did plant an apple tree to commemorate the birth of our lovely babes. Having kids has reaffirmed our need for good organic home-grown food, and the need to get rid of more lawn to grow that home-grown food (not to mention the positive environmental implications of growing your own stuff). We have plans to build a cold-frame using reclaimed (we are proud trash-pickers) to extend the growing season. There is also the dream of owning some chickens and goats and moving to a larger piece of land one day, to expand on this dream of ours to be more self-sufficient. This year we’ve planted or started indoors, so far, 7 varieties of tomatoes, lettuces, sunflowers, melon, peas, broccoli, onions, okra, cabbage and eggplant. If all goes well (and space allows for it) there will be many more seeds planted when the soil warms up.

I wish I had the time to dig up the entire yard and care for it in such a way that I could grow food year-round and feed all of us almost exclusively on what I grew, but that is not realistic. The temperature doesn’t allow for that and neither does time. So, we grow what we can, on the land we have time to till. At this point, we’re not saving that much money by growing some of our own food, but anyway, I don’t think that’s the point. Honestly, I think what I love most of all, is that I know HOW to grow food. That, to me, is just amazing. Maybe the second best thing is that, one day, my kids will know that potatoes grow in the ground and cucumbers on vines, not trees J

So, what is everyone else planting and what are your reasons for claiming parts of your yards for food? Are your motivations political, environmental or romantic perhaps? What does your food revolution look like?

Thank you for this, Genevieve!

If YOU have something you'd love to write about (or make art about!), something cool you want to share, I strongly encourage you to submit it to the DIY Life Zine.  It's a project I'm really excited about, and I'm so looking forward to seeing all the great stuff people come up with for it!

Peace,
Idzie 

Vegetarianism

When I was six years old, at a summer fair with my mother, I came across a table on animal rights, with photos (maybe a video playing too?) of how animals are treated and killed in slaughterhouses.  I don't remember this myself, or at least I don't think I do.  It feels like one of these phantom memories, lodged in your head from hearing a story so many times, you can *almost* remember it yourself...  And apparently, I instantly decided I would stop eating meat.  And I gave almost all meat up instantly.  "Almost all" because, well, I was six, so hotdogs and McDonald's chicken mcnuggets were hard for me to give up.  However, even the allure of those wore off, and by age eight I was completely vegetarian.

As you can tell, it was originally for ethical reasons.  As I got older, I went through various reasons (health, ethical, environment, meat just didn't appeal to me), but whatever the reason I gave when I was asked why I was vegetarian, I have been since age eight.

I got used to all the stupid questions and comments pretty quickly, and just learned to smile vaguely and ignore anything I found insulting.

Recently though, there's been lots of talk I've seen online among more radical people: very anti-vegetarian stuff coming from anti-civ anarchists, that I honestly find slightly hurtful.  I think it stems from Lierre Keith, author of The Vegetarian Myth, doing lots of talks recently, bringing up a lot of very interesting things to think about, but also making a lot of people very angry and defensive (even to the extent of harassing and harming her).  But, here's the thing: I want to read her book!!  I've listened to parts of her talks with interest.  I want to learn more.  Yet, I'm vegetarian.  And I don't plan to stop being vegetarian anytime soon.  The anger directed at ALL vegetarians is completely misplaced, as far as I'm concerned.  Attack the vegetarians and vegans who have actually been assholes, not ALL vegetarians and vegans!

This goes against something I find very important, and try very hard to do myself, and that is to attack the ideas/beliefs/institutions, not the people.  Or if I really do feel a need to condemn individuals, I make sure it's the specific individuals who I feel have done wrong, not others who simply share some of the same beliefs and ideals. 

But getting back to the topic of my vegetarianism.  If I believe as other anti-civers do, that agriculture (the destruction of all life on a piece of land to plant monocrops) is harmful and unsustainable, why do I have the diet I do?  Well, it's been something I've been thinking about a lot lately, and I think I've come up with the basics of it.  Firstly, it's both habit at this point, and something I feel good with.  I don't feel a lack because I'm not eating meat.  When I'm eating healthy vegetarian food I feel healthy!  Secondly, if I was ever to eat meat, it would only be meat from animals I knew had been treated well and killed with respect.  That's both expensive and often hard to find, unless you hunt yourself.  Which brings me to another reason I don't eat meat: I have this feeling that whatever I eat should be something that I myself  would be willing to harvest or kill.  Pulling up a carrot is just as surely killing as shooting a deer, and I recognize that fact where I think too many others don't.  But I can bring myself to kill a carrot where I can't bring myself to kill a deer, so I eat carrots where I don't eat venison.  I wouldn't kill a chicken, so I don't eat chicken.  My feelings may change at some point, but that's where things are right now.

I try to eat as much organic, locally grown produce as possible, both for health and sustainability reasons (really, the two are the same things!  Unsustainable practices means unhealthy or dead humans.), and this year I want to grow more veggies myself.   I'm also experimenting with my diet this summer, seeing how I feel cutting out virtually all grains and processed foods from my diet.  But for now, meat is not going to be a part of my diet, and I'd really appreciate it if I wasn't made to feel bad about that fact!

Peace,
Idzie 

P.S. I want to make sure, because I'm not sure how what I said about others views on eating meat came across, that all the anti-civers I've ever met (online and in real life) are strongly against factory farming and animal abuse.  Most just see eating meat, that's either hunted or raised kindly, as part of a sustainable diet.

In Honour of International Women's Day

In conversation recently, someone said to me they don't think that most men realize to what lengths women are expected to go to look "pretty".

I think that person is right.

I also think many women don't think much about all the things they're expected to do to look "pretty".  For the most part, those things are just accepted.  Normal.  Just what you do.

And it harms us.  Physically and emotionally. 

Physically, the average woman is exposed to a huge amount of chemicals on a daily basis: the facial cleansers, body creams, lip balms, makeup, deodorant, hairspray, perfume.  All of these (except for a very few "natural" brands that actually don't contain any harmful chemicals) are loaded with carcinogens and other harmful chemicals.  Yet if a woman, or even more so, a teenage girl, doesn't wear makeup she's often considered a freak.

For fear of being ostracized, for fear of weird looks, most women shave.  Most women wear a bra.  Most women wear makeup.  And most women would never even consider NOT doing any of these things!!  If they're freely chosen, none of these things are bad (with the exclusion of cosmetics and body care products containing harmful ingredients).  But as the ONLY option, the only way you'll be considered attractive (or so people think), I think it's absolutely horrible.

Why can't people see that breasts are not, actually, bra shaped, and that they move when you move?  Why can't people see that all humans have hair all over their bodies, not just the parts currently considered socially acceptable?  Why can't people see what a beautiful face looks like without a heavy coating of makeup?

I went through a stage, in my mid-teens, where I felt so different, so out of place, and I was desperate to fit in.  So, casting off my hippie upbringing, I bought bras, and shaved my legs, and even after a while started wearing makeup.  I got to the point where I'd usually put makeup on before leaving the house, and if I wasn't wearing any, I'd look in the mirror and think I looked ugly.

That's what kind of snapped me out of it, along with my new findings about just how dangerous many chemicals in cosmetics are.  I didn't want to get cancer.  And I knew that I should not think that the only true beauty was from synthetic gunk on my face.

That also coincided with a definite movement in my life towards finding myself.  Creating my own identity, being my own person.  This involved, and involves, a steady movement to a more "hippie"-ish, more organic, and less constrained by social mores, existence.

So I've become part of the bras and razors are optional club (want to join me? ;-)).   Really, why must I change my body, constrain myself in weird and uncomfortable undergarments, or endanger my health by absorbing harmful chemicals into my skin, to fit into some version of beauty I neither accept nor support?

I guess you could say I'm in the process of detoxing from the expectations of this culture.   In both this area of my life, and in many others.  It's a long process, and often a difficult one, to break away from the expectations of your entire culture.  But I think it's a very healthy, very *good* thing to be doing.

Peace,
Idzie

Green Anarchy

If I wait until I feel ready to explain green anarchy in my own words, I will never write that post.  So I decided, instead, to give you the link to a great introductory article on the subject, and to comment a bit on specific parts of that article.

Before going into that, I'm going to say this: I'm not looking to start debates, and as I've mentioned previously, I find posting highly politicized posts to be nerve wracking.  I've decided to keep the comments on this post open for now (depending on the nature of the comments, I *may* choose to close commenting at a later date.  I don't think I will, and I don't want to, but I also want to keep that option open in case I find the feedback I'm getting is stressing me too much!  Yeah, I know, I'm overly sensitive.), but I ask that you please refrain from attempting to start any big political debates!  I feel a need to add a bit extra to this anti-debating thing, that I feel in my last couple of posts I didn't address as much as I should have.  I have no problems having my opinions questioned.  I do have a problem with my opinions being questioned in a confrontational, adversarial, disrespectful, way.  I love talking in person about my views with people whom I know to be open-minded and respectful, and the person I spend the most time having in-depth conversations with is my sister.  She's a more analytical thinker than I am, and we complement each other wonderfully in discussions.  She'll often point out things I may not have seen, or tell me when something I say doesn't seem thought through very thoroughly.  I don't, however, like having those conversations online, where it's often hard to tell how the other person feels.  But I seriously digress.

There's a lot of information to be found on green anarchy online, but almost none of it is information for "beginners", just for those who already have a basic understanding of green anarchist philosophies.  So I was very happy to find this article, from Green Anarchy magazine, called An Introduction to Anti-Civilization Anarchist Thought and Practice.  I warn you, it is quite long, but it's also a wonderful introduction to the types of things that most green anarchists question and think about.

This article covers many different things, including the all important thing, when talking about being anti-civilization, of What Is Civilization?:

"Green anarchists tend to view civilization as the logic, institutions, and physical apparatus of domestication, control, and domination. While different individuals and groups prioritize distinct aspects of civilization (i.e. primitivists typically focus on the question of origins, feminists primarily focus on the roots and manifestations of patriarchy, and insurrectionary anarchists mainly focus on the destruction of contemporary institutions of control), most green anarchists agree that it is the underlying problem or root of oppression, and it needs to be dismantled."

And in the section Biocentrism vs. Anthropocentrism, it talks about one of the things I consider to be my core values:

"Biocentrism is a perspective that centers and connects us to the earth and the complex web of life, while anthropocentrism, the dominant world view of western culture, places our primary focus on human society, to the exclusion of the rest of life. A biocentric view does not reject human society, but does move it out of the status of superiority and puts it into balance with all other life forces. It places a priority on a bioregional outlook, one that is deeply connected to the plants, animals, insects, climate, geographic features, and spirit of the place we inhabit. There is no split between ourselves and our environment, so there can be no objectification or otherness to life. Where separation and objectification are at the base of our ability to dominate and control, interconnectedness is a prerequisite for deep nurturing, care, and understanding. Green anarchy strives to move beyond human-centered ideas and decisions into a humble respect for all life and the dynamics of the ecosystems that sustain us."

In Division of Labour and Specialization, another important point is brought up, that of how disconnected we are from the mechanics of our own well-being:

"The disconnecting of the ability to care for ourselves and provide for our own needs is a technique of separation and disempowerment perpetuated by civilization. We are more useful to the system, and less useful to ourselves, if we are alienated from our own desires and each other through division of labor and specialization. We are no longer able to go out into the world and provide for ourselves and our loved ones the necessary nourishment and provisions for survival. Instead, we are forced into the production/consumption commodity system to which we are always indebted."

It also talks about decentralization, something I think is incredibly important. From Against Mass Society:

"We reject mass society for practical and philosophical reasons. First, we reject the inherent representation necessary for the functioning of situations outside of the realm of direct experience (completely decentralized modes of existence). We do not wish to run society, or organize a different society, we want a completely different frame of reference. We want a world where each group is autonomous and decides on its own terms how to live, with all interactions based on affinity, free and open, and non-coercive. We want a life which we live, not one which is run."

Of course, as the author even says in Influences and Solidarity, many green anarchists come to different conclusions on various points from those of the author:

"It is also important to remember that, while many green anarchists draw influence from similar sources, green anarchy is something very personal to each who identify or connect with these ideas and actions."

However, I definitely think that this is a very good introduction!

I hope that if you're interested in truly learning about green anarchy, you choose to read the entire article, not just the bits I've included in this post, because those bits really only give you a part of the whole story (hell, they just give you part of the whole story, taken from an article that is itself just a small part of the whole story!).  And I hope that it gives you a better understanding of where I'm coming from, as well!

How I ended up considering myself a green anarchist was actually by process of elimination: anything that didn't jive with my core values, I just didn't agree with.  I had no faith in politicians or governments, and had been interested in anarchy, in a very vague sense, for years.  However, I just always believed everyone around me when they said that it was a load of crap, and so I didn't look into it myself for a while...  But when I did, I sure liked it!!  However, with most anarchist philosophies, I saw a major flaw: they were concerned entirely with humans and with human society, and didn't really seem to consider the environment or the greater web of life.  So when I found green anarchy, it just felt right.  Here was something that finally made sense to me!

I also hope that by reading that article, it'll cause you to think about and question some things that you may never have thought of before...

For a currently small but ever growing resource list of interesting stuff on green anarchy and post-leftist anarchy, go to the bottom of my Links and Resources page!

Peace,
Idzie

Musings on the "normal" raising of babies

It says something about the hippie upbringing I've had that every time I see someone walk past with their baby balanced on their hip, struggling to juggle their shopping bags or open a door, I think "why aren't they wearing a sling? It would be so much easier!".  And every time I see a baby being bottle fed, I shudder, thinking how much better/healthier/cheaper/more convenient breastfeeding is (before someone feels a need to tell me that some people are unable to breastfeed, I realize that.  But the fact remains that the great majority simply choose not to!).

I grew up surrounded by lots of granola/hippie homeschooling moms. ;-) Babywearing and breastfeeding (and co-sleeping) have always been what's *normal* to me, and I find myself surprised at how *abnormal* those things are to much of the population!  So many people think breastfeeding is "gross", co-sleeping "dangerous", and so many people don't seem to even know about the existence of babywearing.

Instead, what's "normal" to most people is formula in plastic bottles; strollers and carry-able seats; disposable diapers and cribs.  All so artificial, and so *removed*!  The world is a strange and sad place when that's what's considered *normal*.

Continuing in the same vein, I found this video recently, of art from all over the world depicting the baby Jesus nursing.  I'm not Christian in the slightest, but that didn't make me find this art, or what it says about the cultures that created it, any less lovely.  From the blog, Peaceful Parenting, that created this video:

"Images of Mary breastfeeding Jesus were once ubiquitous in churches around the world. But eventually in North America, as the artificial feeding of babies became more popular, and the plastic bottle replaced the breast, our nipplephobia got the best of us and these sacred images all but disappeared from churches and art galleries in North America."

Enjoy!



Peace,
Idzie

Review of For The Sake Of Our Children

“How did we ever decide to deliver our children to strangers with questionable skills during the best hours of the day? In the same way, we agreed to have the birthing process taken away from us by the medical profession. In the same way, we agreed to have our dying taken away by this same profession and the directors of funeral “homes.” In the same way, we agreed to be satisfied consumers of processed food that has been so far removed from its original state that it is unrecognizable, consumers of biased information, misleading and enticing advertising for things like disposable gadgets. In the same way, we have agreed to accept the authority of the State-Mommy-who-watches-over-us.”

For The Sake of Our Children by Léandre Bergeron, translated by Pamela Levac

This is a book about unschooling. But this is not a book *just* about unschooling. It’s a book about attachment parenting, respectful parenting. About sustainable living and farming. It even has a good sized fistful of politics thrown in! In short, this is a book about one man’s life, led trusting and respecting both his daughters and the world around him.

Léandre Bergeron comes from an interesting background: born in Manitoba, educated at a Catholic school in the hopes that he’d one day become a missionary priest, and eventually becoming a teacher, his rebellious nature led him to put all that behind him and move with his wife to rural Quebec. It’s there, on their homestead, that his three daughters were born, and there that the story truly begins.

Léandre shares, in the pages of a journal he kept for a year, his daily life spent with his three teenage daughters, the flowing rhythms of their days that move with the seasons. He shares memories of the past, stories of raising his daughters from the time they were babies, stories of their business (a health food store), the circle of life on their farm... He also shares his very strong opinions on childrearing, education and schooling, and the processed lives so many people live in this modern world. His words are insightful, his writing poetic and flowing, and thus this book was a joy to read. I found it interesting that in most books on unschooling, I find myself nodding in agreement with pretty much everything, whereas in this book, my opinions where more mixed. Much of the stuff he has to say I agree with fully. But there was a fair bit that made me pause, and seriously consider my stance on the matter. Not for anything huge, just at small points throughout the book. This, I believe, instead of taking away from the experience, actually added something to my reading of this book.

I did find myself wanting to hear more about the *entire* family, mom included, because she was mentioned only briefly throughout the book. However, most of what I’ve read on unschooling seems to be like that, only usually it’s entirely from the mother’s perspective. Just one parent’s interactions with their children, not how their family works as a whole, so that isn’t really unique to this book. That said, I found it a very pleasant change to read a book, talking about hands on attachment parenting and unschooling, not just the theory, written by a father. That subject seems to be covered almost exclusively by mothers! I also really liked that this book was about a family in my home province (and current residence!) of Quebec. The translation was great, as you’d never know that it was originally written in another language from reading it, yet at the same time the book felt very *Quebecois*!

Definitely a good read, and a good addition to any book collection on attachment parenting, sustainable living, unschooling, or homeschooling.

Peace,
Idzie

Connections

What I value in life are connections.

Connections to the humans around me, connections to the other non-human animals, to the land, wind, water. Connections to the food I eat, to how and where it was grown, to how it was cooked. Connections to my health, to the medicines I take.

Sure, I may watch a few TV shows, I may wander around the internet, but those things have a disconnect about them. A passivity and distance to them. They're not fulfilling to me on a deeper lever.

And that's what I mean when I talk about connections, and why I can tell people, in all honesty, all I need to be happy, truly happy, is clean water to drink, food that isn't poisoned, a whole and healthy land base, and a supportive, loving community. That's all I need. All I want.

I've been thinking about this a lot, since I've realized how much I enjoy, and always have enjoyed, living as much outside of the commercialized consumerist lifestyle as I can. I adore wonderful thrift store finds, warm wool sweaters and worn jeans, love going to local farmers markets and picking out fresh produce, or, even better, harvesting our own homegrown vegetables and herbs... And this is far from a new thing! This didn't come from when my views got more "radical".

When I was a child, for years I was absolutely obsessed with pioneers (yes, I now have very different opinions on those individuals who took over land already being lived on by Aboriginal peoples, but, well, I was a kid, and those thoughts never crossed my mind). I would dress in period garb, read anything, both fiction and non-fiction, about pioneers that I could get my hands on, and all of that jazz. But even more then that, we made our own candles. Our own lanterns for them. I sewed and embroidered things myself. In the Great Ice Storm of '98, I was positively thrilled when the power went off! Then, as now, our main source of heat was the wood stove, so we really didn't suffer much, unlike so many other people. We cooked on the wood stove, heated water there for our baths, which then had to be lugged upstairs to the bathroom. Burned candles for light when it got dark. I loved it!

That's what I mean when I say connections. That joy, warmth, and fulfillment that comes not from purchased things, not from "experts", but from all the little connections to the little things, that make life feel good.

To be intimately acquainted to all aspects of your life, and as an extension of that, all aspects of the community as a whole: that's my dream, my ideal, and my vision for how I want to live my life, and the world I want to help create (or, more accurately, help to re-discover). I can't think of any better way to live than that!

Peace,
Idzie

Making a Zine, and looking for submissions!!

Guess what? I’m putting together a zine!! Zines are just so cool, I decided that I’d love to put one together myself, with the help of all of you, of course! The theme of the zine is:

DIY Life: Doing things independently of experts, professionals, institutions, corporations, or similar things.

I’m looking for submissions of articles, opinions, artwork, poetry, quotes, and anything else you want to send me. I finally decided on this theme because I feel it gives a ton of freedom in what you submit (anything from physical DIY projects, to articles on radical political philosophy, to education, parenting, crafting, and beyond!) while still retaining a more radical feeling and outlook, which makes me, personally, happy! As a note, your submission can also be ANTI or AGAINST something you see as being opposed to a DIY lifestyle (i.e schools).

The theme is pretty flexible, but I do reserve the right to not accept submissions that really do not fit with the theme (i.e. why public schooling is absolutely necessary), though I don’t really expect to turn down anything, and am really looking forward to seeing what you guys have to share!!

Once I’ve received enough submissions, and with enough prior warning to everyone who’s interested in submitting, of course, I will then put everything together in a proper zine, which I will then send by email (most likely in PDF format) to anyone who wants it (if someone can point me towards a good, safe, file hosting website, then I may also have it there for easy downloading), or if someone wants a hard copy, you can send me a few dollars to cover printing and shipping and I can send it straight to you (sorry guys, but I’m broke, so that’s the only way I can do it!). I will also distribute some hard copies locally, and I’d love it if you guys also chose to do so, but really, share it as much or as little as you want to, and in whatever ways you want to!

If you have something already written that you’d like to submit, send it straight to me. If you simply know that you want to submit something, but don’t have it done yet and/or haven’t decided what you’re going to do, please send me an email letting me know that, so that I know you will be submitting something at some point!  Oh, and I will happily help with editing if you want me to, just ask. Otherwise, I will fix spelling mistakes and obvious grammatical mistakes (the same word repeated twice, for instance), but will touch nothing else without your permission. Send all submissions to: open.eyed.slave@gmail.com

IMPORTANT: If you want people to be able to find more of your work if they’re interested, let me know when you send in your submission if you have a website, blog, Twitter account, or any site that you want to be included in the zine (example: Urban Foraging by Cindy Jones (www.foragingwithcindy.com).

Suggestions, just that I can think of off the top of my head, and please know that you’re entirely not limited just to the items in this list:

Articles on:
• Education (unschooling, homeschooling, skill sharing, community classes, educational co-ops)
• Parenting (attachment/natural parenting, radical unschooling, non-conditional parenting)
• Personal health care (herbal medicine, wild medicinals, nutrition, first aid)
• Sustainable living (gardening, food preservation, foraging, non-toxic and homemade household products, re-purposing projects, cooking and recipes)
• Community building/living/good for community/people stuff (community organizing, collectives, cooperatives, non-violent communication, peer counseling, autonomous living, intentional communities, any by the people for the people type stuff)
• Independent travel
• DIY projects or crafting projects of any sort (building a kiln, soap making, jewelry making, bow and arrow making, whatever you enjoy doing!)

Art such as:
• Any artwork, in B&W (photos aren’t great though, since they don’t photocopy well)
• Any poetry
• Any copyleft (not copyrighted), or licensed under creative commons, artwork other than your own that you think would fit with the zine

NOTE: Because of its nature, your own artwork and poetry does not need to conform to the theme, though it certainly can.

Miscellaneous stuff such as:
• Quotes, verses, or similar things, yours or copyleft stuff
• Anything else you can think of!!!!!


NOTE: by submitting anything, you agree that it is “copyleft” (not copyrighted), and can be copied and distributed by anyone. That’s just the way zines work: people often appropriate content in them for other uses (usually with proper attribution, although there are no guarantees).

For this to work, of course, I need submissions (sent to open.eyed.slave@gmail.com!)!! I’m really hoping I’ll get enough, really looking forward to seeing everything I do get, and just generally really excited about this project. :-D Also, if you have any questions or suggestions, please drop me a line as well! (Same address as above: open.eyed.slave@gmail.com)

Oh, and please feel free to pass this on to anyone whom you think may be interested!

Peace,
Idzie

Albatross zine

A totally awesome zine just came out, which includes my old post Anti-Civilization and What That Means (which I no longer like particularly, but that's beside the point. :-P). It's full of interesting stuff on green anarchy, DIY stuff, natural parenting, and similarly cool things. You can view it here: Albatross #1, or download it here. You can also send me an email (open.eyed.slave@gmail.com) and I can send the file directly to you, if you'd prefer. :-)

Peace,
Idzie

Earth Day

Oh, in my last post I said I didn't have anything of my own to say, but that was because I forgot that today was Earth Day. Now, I am most certainly not a fan of Earth Day. One day, out of all the year, to think about conservation, and to honor the Earth, our one and only home, which just happens to be dying. One day? Really? Yeah, that's going to do a lot of good. The only plus I see is that shows, articles, and similar things on environmentalism have been all over the place lately. They're all from a very mainstream perspective, of course, but even mainstream scientists are realizing just how dire our predicament is, and I can't help but hope that maybe, just maybe, all this stuff could cause at least a few people to look into things themselves, and perhaps make them decide to do something about it, something a bit more substantial than buying "green" paper towels... I could write more about environmentalism, but it seems I've already done that in the past, and until I think of something new to add (which I'm sure I will in due time), I don't really want to return to the same subjects. I will, however, leave you with links to a couple of my old posts on environmentalism, green anarchy, etc.

Anti-Civilizationism

Environmental Quotes

On the Interconnectedness of Life

The Problem With "Green"

An Elaboration on the Problem With "Green"

Anyway, just thought I'd add that. :-)

Peace,
Idzie

Anti-civ and environmental quotes

I'm sorry to be depressing yet again, but I've found lots of really cool anti-civ and/or environmental quotes lately, and I wanted to share them.

"The people of your culture cling with fanatical tenacity to the specialness of man. They want desperately to perceive a vast gulf between man and the rest of creation. This mythology of human superiority justifies their doing whatever they please with the world, just the way Hitler’s mythology of Aryan superiority justified his doing whatever he pleased with Europe. But in the end this mythology is not deeply satisfying. The Takers are a profoundly lonely people. The world for them is enemy territory, and they live in it like an army of occupation, alienated and isolated by their extraordinary specialness.” Daniel Quinn

“For us to maintain our way of living, we must tell lies to each other and especially to ourselves. The lies are necessary because, without them, many deplorable acts would become impossibilities.” Derrick Jensen

"Having long laid waste our own sanity, and having long forgotten what it feels like to be free, most of us too have no idea what it’s like to live in the real world. Seeing four salmon spawn causes me to burst into tears. I have never seen a river full of fish. I have never seen a sky darkened for days by a single flock of birds (I have, however, seen skies perpetually darkened by smog). As with freedom, so too the extraordinary beauty and fecundity of the world itself: It’s hard to love something you’ve never known. It’s hard to convince yourself to fight for something you may not believe has ever existed." Derrick Jensen

"Even now, we hardly love the Earth or see with eyes or listen any longer with our ears, and we scarcely feel our hearts beat before they break in protest." Stanley Diamond

"We have been too kind to those who are destroying the planet. We have been inexcusably, unforgivably, insanely kind." Derrick Jensen

"I should really like to think there's something wrong with me —
Because, if there isn't then there's something wrong,
Or at least, very different from what it seemed to be,
With the world itself — and that's much more frightening!" T.S.Eliot

"The only measure by which we will be judged by the people who come after is the health of the land base, because that is what is going to support them. They are not going to give a shit whether or not we were pacifists; they are not going to give a shit if we supported Israel or we didn't support Israel; whether we voted green or democrat or republican or not at all. What they are going to care about is whether they can drink the water, whether they can breathe the air, whether the land can support them. One of the important questions is to ask what does the land need from you." Derrick Jensen

"How is it conceivable that all our lauded technological progress--our very civilization--is like the axe in the hand of the pathological criminal?" Albert Einstein


You know, many people find learning about the type of stuff I read about depressing, but I don't. And surprisingly, many, if not most, green anarchists feel the same way. Or I shouldn't say that. It is depressing, but it doesn't affect my overall happiness, and neither does it affect the overall happiness of other green anarchists I know. More than anything else, I find the knowledge freeing.

Peace,
Idzie

The interconnectedness of life

I feel a need to write about something, but I'm not sure what...

I wanted to write a lovely 'about me' post like Sheila did, but I'm not sure how to go about that... I know myself very well, but actually putting that knowledge down in an even semi coherent manner seems very difficult, especially considering how tired my brain is right now.

I also wanted to write about how ridiculous homophobia is. But I think I'd do a really lousy job of it at the moment.

Oh, here's something I think I can manage, since it's far from the logical/researched end of things and much more on the emotional/feelings end of the spectrum. And that thing is how much it pisses me off when humans look at (our)themselves as somehow special, and "better" than all other creatures. Unlike many of my opinions, this is something that's bothered me for years! I'd often read books when I was younger that portrayed humans as the only ones with souls or real personalities, and all other creatures as nothing more than animals to be used, eaten, or controlled. This portrayal always bothered me a great deal, and felt amazingly wrong on a fundamental level.

On a personal level, I can simply see the ridiculousness of it. I look at one of the furry family members that share my home, I look at the raccoons that clatter around on the deck, or the squirrels that race around the tops of fences, or the maple tree that rustles in the wind, and I don't see empty bodies blindly going about basic tasks. I see separate individuals who are simply living their life. I don't understand how they can be looked at as worthless by so many. Life is life, and every creature looks different. We're just one of a vast hots of different species that inhabits this planet. What makes the human race believe it's so special?

On a much larger level, I've recently realized how absolutely stupid and destructive this world view is. If humans are intrinsically of more value, and everything else is somehow lesser, than that leads to the belief that the world is here simply for us, and we as humans have the right to use, abuse, and destroy absolutely anything we wish.

As many of you know, this worldview is leading to the destruction of our planet.

Yes, I'm going to talk about something Derrick Jensen said again. I love how his ideas and words make such perfect sense. Instead of saying that it's always wrong to kill a creature for food, or that it's always wrong to cut down a tree, he instead says that as soon as you or I consume the flesh of an animal, we are obligated to ensure that species survival and well being. As soon as we cut down a tree, we are obligated to insure the survival and well being of that forest. To me, this way is the most ethical, simple, and intelligent way we can possibly look at things. He also goes on to say that if you consume the flesh of a factory farmed animal, you are then obligated to do everything in your power to end factory farming. Same goes if you consume the flesh of a factory farmed carrot.

By looking at things that way, it's impossible to not see how inextricably everything is linked.

I've heard people question why they should care about the extinction of a specific species, whether it's animal or plant or tree, and the answer is so amazingly obvious. Even if you believe that humans have some innate something that makes them "better" than other animals (for we are simply another species of animal), our survival is linked with the survival of every other species on the planet. When a forest is cut down, every human and non-human is ensured less oxygen. When the great fish of the ocean are driven extinct, we ensure ourselves, as well as countless other animals, and countless other forests, less food. When we pollute a river, or all rivers (there are toxins in every single river now), we ensure that both humans and non-humans will no longer be able to drink clean water. Everything we do to harm another life, whether it's trees, animals, rivers, it harms us. Karma in it's truest form.

My mind is feeling very tired, so I'll stop here for now. Just a few thoughts and opinions I figured I'd throw out there, since I think they are extremely important.

Peace,
Idzie

New quote and anarchy

"Real revolution starts with learning. If you're not angry, you're not paying attention." ~Rise Against

Yes, I'm in another anti-state/capitalism/fascism etc mood. I've been reading this really cool blog, that I've been following for a while now, called GreenIsTheNewRed, that deals with the so called "Green Scare", the labeling by governments of environmental activists as "Eco-Terrorists". For anyone who values freedom as much as I do, reading about the crap that's going on, especially in the US, both scares and angers me. I still think it's really important to know, however.

I'm also about to start Endgame Vol. 2: Resistance by Derrick Jensen, so I'll probably be in a political frame of mind again for a while now. Wait, I'm always in a green anarchist frame of mind, aren't I? Never mind... :-P Oh, and I've been wondering, is it annoying how often I talk about that type of stuff? Because I've been feeling like it might be...

Peace,
Idzie

An interesting excert

Thank you for your suggestions to my previous post! I think I'll do 'a week in the life of an unschooler' type thing, following both Michele and Signe's suggestions (well, not the suggestion to talk about Signe, but the unschooling one ;-) ). But for now, I wanted to share this exert, which I very much like. I've written in the past about how misguided I find the whole "Green Living" thing (you can check out my past posts on it here and here), and since this excert says so simply why I dislike the whole "Green" thing, I figured I'd post it too.

"The whole individualist what-you-can-do-to-save-the-earth guilt trip is a myth. We, as individuals, are not creating the crises, and we can't solve them. Take our crazy energy consumption. For the past 15 years the story has been the same every year: individual consumption--residential, by private car, and so on--is never more than about a quarter of all consumption; the vast majority is commercial, industrial, corporate, by agribusiness and government. So, even if we all took up cycling and wood stoves it would have a negligible impact on energy use,global warming and atmospheric pollution. I mean, sure, go ahead and live a responsible environmental life; recycle, compost, ride a push-bike; but do it because it is the right, moral thing to do--not because it's going to save the planet.
If we really want to understand why this happened we have to ask ourselves another question: "Why is it that we seem willing to live with the threat of apocalypse rather than trying to seriously alter a world where consumption, of anything, is seen as unrelieved virtue, production, of anything, is regarded as a social and economic necessity, and more, of anything (like children or cars or chemicals or PhDs or golf courses or recycling centers), is unquestiononly accepted?""

That is by Kirkpatrick Sale. Oops I just made another political post, didn't I? Oh well. So now I shall try and keep track of what I do this week as an unschooler... Just so you know, it'll probably be boring. :-P Most of the the "learning" I do involves thinking, reading, and discussing, which although very fascinating to me, is not so much fun to read about! Oh, and here's a couple of quotes that I've found recently, and loved. They've also been added to my quotes page.

"None are so hopelessly enslaved as those who falsely believe they are free." Goethe

"The hardest battle in life is to be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing it's best, night and day, to make you like everybody else." E. E. Cummings

I love quotes. :-)

Peace,
Idzie

My rather unconventional views...

Check out my YouTube channel if you want.

Peace,
Idzie

Pride

For a long time, I was a really insecure person. I mean, I still am insecure about some things, but I used to be much more sensitive, and to constantly doubt myself. If my family didn't like a movie I liked, I felt slightly embarrassed for liking it. I worried constantly of what other people thought of me, thought of my ideas. I worried constantly that "they", that great, all knowing yet invisible entity, were right about a lot of things. What if "they" were right that unschooling was a "bad thing"? What if "they" were right that I should be more outgoing, or wear make-up, or have tons of friends... I think worrying about what the magical "they" thought about me and my family's life choices took up way too much of my time...

All that type of worrying is getting steadily further into the past now, but I'm just recently starting to notice a new emotion, pride.

I've realized that I'm actually proud of my beliefs, of my opinions, of me. I've realized that I'm not like everyone else. I'm never going to be like everyone else. But far more importantly, I've realized I have absolutely no desire to "be like everyone else". As if there's somehow a standard of normality, with rules that no one has ever read, yet so many people believe and follow.

I'm proud to be me. I'm far from perfect, and I still go through periods of self doubt, of disliking who I am. But those are becoming less frequent, and being overrun by new feelings. I'm proud that I believe what I do. I believe in anarchy, in true freedom, in radical unschooling and attachment parenting and breastfeeding, in human and non-human rights, in mutual respect, respect for humans, non-humans, and the world we're so incredibly blessed to call home. I'm proud that I talk about all of these things, debate them passionately, and try to show other people my views, let them understand why I believe all of the above are so important. I'm proud that I've gotten over my fear of ridicule to do so, and saddened that so many people either have no causes they believe in, or have yet to muster the courage to speak out about them. Because it can truly be a very hard thing to do. Society often reacts badly to those who don't conform, so by speaking out, it sometimes feels like you're opening yourself up for rejection from society itself, as if it's a single entity, the cool person whom you secretly, or not so secretly, crave acceptance and approval from.

I kind of realized just a few days ago that I'm pretty much an unschooling advocate. That word sounds big, impressive, professional, and incredibly intimidating. "One who defends, vindicates, or espouses a cause by argument; upholder; defender" states my ancient Random House dictionary that weighs over ten pounds. "A person who speaks or writes in support or defense of a person, cause, etc." says Dictionary.com. Wow. It seems hard to believe, but that sounds like what I've been doing very actively for the past six months or so. It feels strange... I've been thinking constantly that I should become an "activist", get involved with some local environmental groups. Find a cause. And I still want to get more actively involved in environmentalism. But I've realized that I already have a cause, and one that I'm truly, wholeheartedly, passionate about. A cause that I'm knowledgeable about, and one that many people have never even heard of. I've never kept a tally, that would be silly, but I think of how many people whom I've introduced to the concepts of unschooling, of how many people were first exposed to the idea by me. And I'm proud. I've realized that I have been doing something to forward a cause that I believe in, to make the world a better place, a more open minded place, in whatever small way I can. And I'm proud.

I've now been offered the amazing, if incredibly intimidating, position of unschooling editor at a homeschooling magazine where I've had a book review column for the past two years. The idea was suggested by my mother, and enthusiastically accepted by the editor, to run an unschooling article each issue. And since I'm deemed to have the most unschooling contacts, I've been asked to collect the articles. Now this is all in it's first stages... We don't know if I can get enough articles, if there will be enough interest in writing them from the unschooling community. But I keep thinking about how many young parents, parents just exploring the alternative educational paths, pick up that homeschooling magazine, and what a difference it could, just possibly, make for those parents to see these beautiful, shining, unschooling articles. Articles showing how people can live such free, non-coercive lives. It could make no difference at all. But as long as there's a chance that even a few more people could come to unschooling because of what they read, I have to try and make this work. And I'm proud that I'm getting the opportunity to share something I love and believe in with all of my heart.

I'm proud. And I'm slightly amazed that I'm proud. Such a novel emotion... But I'm proud of myself for overcoming the emotional blocks I have, for learning not to listen to those little voices in my head that say I'm worthless. So there little voices. I'm proud of myself. Ha.

Peace,
Idzie

Cuddly cats and problems with life goals...

As it gets steadily colder and more Winter like (well, not steadily, but generally colder), the cats start sleeping even more, and being adorably cuddly. Minni (orange-brown tabby) and Henry (black-tabby and white) truly are marvelous critters...

I've been spending a lot of time on the computer lately. Probably too much. But part of what I've been doing is researching... I want to know what I want to do! The thing that appeals to me most is an herbalist, or natural healer of some sort. I don't want to be a naturopath, because all that really is, is a doctor without prescription meds, and that's not what I want. I envision a much more earthy approach, if that makes sense. I want to apprentice, not go to university for four years. The thought of spending years in a classroom makes me shudder. I've also been looking into midwifery, but again, that needs four years of university. What ever happened to apprenticeships?!? I'm feeling slightly discouraged. I think I might know what I want to do with my life, or at least I know that I want to try and do certain things with my life, I just don't know how to go about doing them. ARRGH!

Peace (*takes deep breath*),
Idzie

In the last two days...

Since I've fallen down on the job here, I'll tell you (briefly) what happened in the last couple of day.

July 14

Talking talking talking! I discussed sustainable living extensively with my mother as we cooked supper together (Moroccan Lentil Soup and Chicken and Celery Soup). It was nice to make a really good home cooked meal again, as it's something my mom's been rushing around too much to do in a while. I also discussed random things with my dad... And since a friend was over, stayed up until about 2:30 a.m. talking some more! Good times...

July 13

Well, I'm afraid the highlight of that day was not anything spectacular, just the most recent Foyles War mystery. I love that mystery show! Yes, it's aired on PBS, but I don't like all the shiny chase scene filled CTV ones.... So yeah, Foyles Way is awesome.

I'll fill in today's details tonight...