give your cellphone a break

It's not easy. When my kids are home, more often than not they lounge in their rooms and stare either into a laptop or their cellphone. I do remember that my teenage friends and I used to spend hours hogging the home phone and talking our heads off, even though we may have just seen each other in school. So kids need to communicate with their friends, and they do a lot of that now through their e-devices.

But beyond that we all rely too much on those devices for easy and brainless entertainment (such as those silly online tests on what color you would be if you were a color, or those old-people-dancing-I-can't believe-what-they-just-did You Tube videos and what not). Children imitate their parents and the surrounding culture. If you are stuck in your phone or on your laptop all the time, don't be surprised if your child does the same. (Young) children admire their parents and want to be like them. I read a lot when I'm not working (on a computer), and I prefer paper books to e-readers, especially since I read a lot of nonfiction and like to highlight what seems important.  But my kids get a lot of their information from the internet.

I often see adults walking through town, nose deep in their cellphone, bumping into people, even stumbling, blocking the outside world out. A few years ago I took my daughter to a library event on animals, which I followed with interest because they had live animals on hand. But most parents sat in the back, scrolling up and down their Facebook news feeds and emails.

I hate going to a restaurant with people who spend more time with their online friends than the friends sitting right across the table. The other night, when I took my daughter out for an end-of-school-year treat, I observed a mom with her two boys at a neighboring table. She only looked up from her phone when food was served. The rest of the time she spent in (yes, in seems to be the better term, not on) her cellphone instead of talking with her boys - sad. How would you feel if you looked at your mother for inspiration and she kept ignoring you, finding her cellphone more interesting than you?

People, wake up! Life is right here, it's not inside your little devices.   Why not spend flesh-and-blood instead of cybertime time with your friends? These devices are practical, perhaps even ingenious, but let's keep our priorities straight.

when to sow and harvest

While native inhabitants, intimately knowledgeable with their local soil and weather conditions, have oftentimes known to plant in harmony with the lunar cycles (see more info here), Maria Thun, a leading authority on biodynamic agriculture, took this idea one step further. She did extensive research on the planetary influences on all produce growing phases.

Biodynamics (see here a previous blog posts on biodynamics) has often been criticized by skeptics. However, as it is dawning on us that the agriculture we have been practicing for the last 50 or so years may be doing more damage than good on a long-term basis, all kinds of alternative models are being resurrected and researched. These models all require a deep knowledge of local conditions - weather, soil, and native plant combinations.  So it behooves us to be open to all kinds of old and new, gentle and cocreative ways to grow out food.

So back to where I'm headed, which is a more connected way to grow your veggies and when. Based on her research, Maria Thun came to the conclusion that different planetary phases influence the growth of plants in different ways. Based on her research she came up with optimal timings for sowing certain types of plants, depending on whether they are root based (i.e. beets, carrots), leaf based (i.e. kale, spinach), fruit based (i.e. tomatoes, eggplant), or flower based (i.e. marigolds) and harvesting.

You can buy the annual illustrated biodynamic Stella Natura calendar, which has many interesting articles and is easy to read and use, but a very consumer friendly version is also available online at rhythmofnature.net (see blog illustration on top).

It has been demonstrated that produce sown into healthy rich soil and sown according to this calendar makes for a much stronger and more resistant plant (I would still recommend buying organic heirloom seeds, though) and a more prolific harvest.

Give it a try.

a bit of formality

The other day my son expressed his confusion over the seeming contradiction between my liberal convictions on the one hand, and my slight formality on the other. I like a bit of flourish, a bit of ritual, some social conventions, respect for the elderly.   And it's probably because of my European background. For example, I have a thing about going to school in flip flops, tank tops or spaghetti straps (which, I think, all belong to the beach), just like I wouldn't go to the office in such attire. I wouldn't go to the supermarket in flip flops, I don't walk around town in shorts, and I feel a bit underdressed and self-conscious when I walk through town in yoga pants on my way to a class. And I never wear sneakers.

I like a nicely set dinner table (with forks and knives in their proper places, and plates and glasses neatly aligned across from each other), and we dress up for special holidays like Thanksgiving, or Christmas, or Easter. I like a bit of ceremony when we have people over for dinner. I plan and choreograph the evening so things run smoothly, so people feel taken care of and don't have to go looking around for water or a fork, so the table looks nice, and so I also have some time to spend with our guests.

Almost every morning, save for some Sundays, I put lipstick and a bit of eye-make-up on and accessorize my outfit, even though I work from home. The other day my daughter said to me "you look a little tired." That was before I had put my eye make-up on, and that is exactly what I always used to say to my own mother when I'd see her without eye make-up.  I'd rather look awake and ready for the day.

Whether it's the European background or my particular family, we were taught proper table manners (using your cutlery from the outside in during a many-course meal, how to place fork and knife when finished vs. when you are still eating, which glass is for which beverage - white/red/water -, serving the oldest woman first and the youngest boy last, and such.

We were also taught proper social conventions by example (holding the door open for the person right behind you, writing thank-you notes for presents received - emailed is better than none -, rsvping on time so the host can plan ahead, and eating what's being served without argument or lengthy explanations of special dietary requirements - just leave aside what you don't want).

All these little conventions, which we could call formal or rigid or dusty, do have some meaning. I enjoy walking past someone nicely dressed at the supermarket, I appreciate when the person in front hands me the door instead of slamming it thoughtlessly into my face, I like being called "Mrs. Fitzsimmons" by a kindergartner instead of "Susanne." These little things become effortless, and let you be more aware of others.  They smooth over the rough edges of life, and make living with others more pleasant.  It's about being thoughtful and respectful, and shows others that you care.

with nature, not against it

The present (waning) industrial petro-energy age, while having afforded us an enormous leap in standard of living, is also unfortunately characterized by domination and exploitation of nature, which we not only rape but also use as a dumping ground for the ensuing waste of the technologies we have developed - a win-lose situation all around. The dire consequences of this belief system are at our doorstep now. A new way of seeing ourselves is embedded and part of nature, not apart from nature. This perspective is birthing a whole new way of looking at technology. Science writer Janine Benyus calls it biomimicry and wrote a book about it. Biomimicry looks at how nature does things and then emulates it for our human applications.

A terrific example from architecture & engineering is a huge building complex in Zimbabwe whose cooling system was inspired by termites' design of their weird looking desert dens that maintain a constant 86 degrees F, even though the outside temperature may range from 30 at night to 110 in mid-day.

An example from agriculture is permaculture.  Permaculture is a man made food growing system that integrates local weather and soil conditions, native and predominantly perennial plants (that don't require tilling the soil), possible integration of animals into the system design, all in a circular wasteless process. Therefore, permaculture has no negative impact on the surrounding environment and it produces food for us.

Win-win all around!  What a great new paradigm.

beYOUtiful

Inauthentic living creates a lot of stress. Inauthentic living is going against your grain, it's doing things to please or impress others.

Authentic living is about leaving behind pretense. It's about being You instead of a composite of what your family, your partner, your culture, or your friends think you should be. Living authentically is about being true to yourself, about doing what your heart tells you to, about aligning yourself with source (God, spirit, your higher self, whatever you wish to call it), about that which is good for you. This let's the energy flow.

Every time someone says to you "you should," you are being shoehorned into their vision of you. Every time you say to someone "you should," you are doing the same to someone else. A lot of times you probably tell yourself, reluctantly maybe, "I should," because of some preconceived notion or belief you hold. Think again.

I learned early in life to be different and to stand up for my beliefs. My best friend in elementary school taught me that lesson. She was different, she came from a different background than the mainstream kids, she looked exotic with her jet black hair and green eyes, and some kids made fun of her because of the way she spoke. I came to her defense, which in turn sprouted a fierce sense of individuality in me. Now I teach my children to critically inspect the many cultural mainstream paradigms before following the lemmings.

Many of us live in fear  - of not having enough (money or other things, but mostly money), losing our job if we don't please the boss, losing our social standing if we do something outside of the social norm of our peers. Conforming for supposed emotional protection at the expense of authenticity is always a compromise.

Feeling good about who you are deep down takes courage because oftentimes that means going against what others do, think, say. But it makes you shine. BeYOUtiful is what you want to be, because you become more beautiful the more you become You.

I also invite to revisit an earlier post "finding the You in You."

rest is best

....or about getting to know your body. It is invaluable  to listen to and understand your body, to learn to read its signals. While it is easy to pop a pill and not give a symptom a second thought, it is helpful and eye-opening to look at symptoms as an expression of something that is going on in your mind. After all, body and mind are inextricably linked.

A headache is something that can oftentimes easily be deciphered as lack of rest, or a cold (need for rest again), or a subconscious issue that bothers you, or a looming decision that's got you in a tizzy, or something stressful going on. Popping that headache pill will eliminate the symptom, at least temporarily, but it will not solve the actual problem. So it makes sense to tune in and go a little deeper to try to understand what caused the headache.

A pulled muscle's provenance is easy to identify and the treatment is straightforward. But, again, popping that pill helps to cover the pain, while it does nothing for actually giving that muscle the rest it needs to heal. Besides, why did you pull it? No time to warm up? Impatience? The answer may be to slow down. And the pulled muscle does that for you.

When something is not quite right in my diet my stomach makes itself known right away. Whether too much meat or carbs, not enough greens, too much sweet stuff - my stomach tells me.   Stress, too, shows up in my stomach.

Two questions to ask yourself about a symptom are: "What does this symptom prevent me from doing?" and "What does this symptom force me to do?"

Breaking a leg prevents you from running around, having a cold makes you rest, losing your voice forces you to be quiet. There can be a lot of symbolism between a symptom and your particular need at this point in time. Don't ignore that need. By simply suppressing that underlying emotional or physical need your body will show you in a different way what it needs.

So - tune in.

P.S.: I also invite you to reread an earlier related blog post "are accidents really accidents?"

no plastics for my food

I don't like to store my leftovers or homemade hummus, mayonnaise, apple sauce, or catfood in plastic containers. Plastics leach the chemicals BPA (bisphenol A), also used in the linings of canned foods, and phtalates into the foods and drinks that are stored in them. Moreover, heating or microwaving food in plastic seems to worsen the effect. Whether we are talking plastic food storage containers, or plastic water or soda bottles, it's all the same. I also try to avoid buying foods that are sold in plastic. Trader Joe's recently switched their organic peanut butter packaging from glass to plastic jars and I stopped buying it. Instead, I now buy organic peanut butter at my local supermarket that carries it in glass jars.

I also stopped buying seltzer and got a home soda making machine.  Not only do I no longer send all those plastic bottles to recycling, I also know that our own water is superior in quality and taste, as is of course the seltzer made from it (and who knows from what water source the commercial seltzer comes from).  Granted, the home seltzer bottles are made from plastic, albeit BPA free plastic (one hopes); in addition the home made seltzer is made to order and consumed immediately, while the store bought seltzer sits in a hot delivery truck in its plastic bottle for hours and perhaps days, and then on a supermarket shelf for more days, and weeks, and perhaps even months. 

Inert materials, such as glass, stainless steel, aluminum or porcelain are safest for food storage. Glass works best, though, because it is see-through. I save wide-mouth glass jars (they are more practical than the narrow-mouth ones) in all sizes from peanut butter, salsa, pickles and such,  and reuse them to store food. I also use Pyrex glass bowls with plastic lids (the lids don't touch the food) for leftovers.

Play it safe, play it glass.

it's not about the destination

There are various English versions of the destination verse, which goes something like this: "It's not about the destination, it's about the journey. " When I was a child many girls kept a Poesiealbum or poetry album.   We would give it to people we knew - family, classmates, teachers, acquaintances - and ask them to write something to remember them by. Some of the verses, as I reread them, mostly from classmates, are only memorable because of their utter sillyness, while others (mostly from teachers and family members) are true philosophical musings or really good life advice.

I found one in my album, by 19th century Austrian writer Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach, which is another version of the destination verse. Loosely translated it says: "Upon attaining your wishes you will definitely miss one thing: the  journey towards your wish."

If life were about the destination we would all rush to accomplish - what? Dying? So we can probably all agree that life is not about the destination. But what about all the other little things we do all day long? This morning my yoga class was a bit strenuous and I just wanted it to be over - until I caught myself in mid-stream. And then I recognized that I wasn't doing so badly, and that I was actually gaining strength.

It's not worth doing something if we rush right past it. Granted, there are things we enjoy doing, and there are things we don't enjoy doing; and it's good if you can arrange your life so you can do more things you do enjoy, than things you don't enjoy. But things are easier with less resistance, as I experienced this morning. And when it's over, it's really over. So, stay with the moment, with the experience, because none like it exactly will ever come back.

You may also want to reread an earlier post "why is 'Now' so important?"

the whole kit and caboodle

Two recent articles made me aware of a truer meaning of sustainable agriculture and where we need to go next in our farm-to-table awareness.

The first one was about the enormous waste in the EU (and likely in the US as well) created by discarding produce that doesn't look perfect even though it is in good condition and tastes just like its more conformist looking counterparts. A young Portuguese woman started a produce cooperative named Fruta Feia or Ugly Fruit to market and sell such imperfect produce at 20%-30% less.

The other article was from chef Dan Barber on widening the premise of sustainable agriculture and including in our food choices also those crops that are typically used as cover crops to replenish the soil.  Soybeans, kidney beans or cowpeas (used as animal feed) are typical nitrogen replenishers for the soil. But Barber was talking about a much more sophisticated and complex crop rotation that is needed to keep the soil fertile and full of minerals, which guarantees not only superior taste but also mineral and trace element rich foods (less supplements you'll need to take). Such other crops might include rye, barley, or buckwheat, all little used in this country because less marketed and less known.

Sustainability, in agriculture and elsewhere, is about a wasteless circular process, in which all "waste" becomes a reusable base component for the next process in the circle, thereby eliminating the idea of "waste" altogether.  A sustainable farm would not buy outside fertilizer, seeds, and pest management products, instead using the farm animal manure for fertilizer, using crop rotation, crop variety and inter-planting as main pest control techniques, and saving its seeds from one year to the next.  Being able to sell its cover crops in addition to its "main crops" makes the farm more  viable and eliminates further waste.

The whole idea behind truly sustainable agriculture is to embrace every part of the agricultural process, the whole kit and caboodle, whether it's the little used rye (here in the US at least), the funny looking strawberries, the carrots with a nose or legs, or the lesser known fava beans (I made a fava bean hummus the other day that was as delicious and tasty as a chickpea hummus).

enjoy your week-end, really

What is it always with this Thursday/Friday frenzy before a long week-end? The pace picks up frenetically, everyone seems to need something very urgently before close of business on Friday, nothing can wait until after the week-end - as if we were closing shop for the next three weeks.   But in light of the fact that we are back on Tuesday morning it's really quite absurd. Many things can wait, and how is a three-day week-end so different from the regular two-day week-end anyhow? In this country - and in Hong Kong, where I lived for a bit, as well - many people feel guilty about taking time off. Culturally, virtue is seen in working long hours (even if they are not all so productive), slaving (or looking as if) away for the bottom line, bowing to the Grand Poobah of profitability and money, and fearing job loss otherwise. Many European countries give between four and six weeks vacation (on top of the many religious holidays and sick leave), and their economies are doing just fine.

We need time off to clear our head, to sleep in, to get out of the métro-boulot-dodo routine (French for the never ending subway-work-sleep grind), pursue our hobbies, spend time with family and friends. Time off refreshes us, it balances us, it puts things into perspective. Lack of sleep and too much stress shorten our lifespan.  Without playtime life is dull and drudgery.

Time off is a necessity in order to perform optimally and creatively, it's not frivolous luxury. Enjoy your week-end and don't feel guilty about your time off.