tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75604301692671342952024-03-08T11:21:10.858-07:00Balance Your ChoicesTrying to help the world change for the better, one decision at a time.Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.comBlogger25125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-24333697752442844622013-08-24T12:27:00.001-06:002013-08-24T12:31:47.151-06:00Fast fashion? It's even in the basics.<a href="http://www.yesmagazine.org/issues/the-human-cost-of-stuff/the-myth-of-cheap-stuff"></a>
<br />
YES! Magazine is wonderful. <br />
This month, it has an info graphic on the effect of clothes manufacturing leaving the US.
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For people looking to cut back, clothes might be a good start.
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<br />
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<a href="http://www.yesmagazine.org/issues/the-human-cost-of-stuff/the-myth-of-cheap-stuff">Human cost of cheap clothes</a>Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-90566200893369323302013-08-22T17:48:00.002-06:002013-08-22T17:59:10.330-06:00Free fashion challenge, wardrobes and the myth of who I really amI'm myself. I get to write part of the myth of who I am. <br>
We all do it. We imagine ourselves in ways that don't meet reality. Maybe someone sees themselves as fat, but is actually underweight and living the distortion of anorexia nervosa.<br>
I see myself as less intelligent, less thoughtful, and kind of clumsy socially, compared to my social circle.
Only one is reinforced by friends. One even says that I'm the smartest person he knows. I don't think it is hyperbole, but he knows some incredibly savvy folks. And he is brilliant himself. So, we have different forms of intelligence, perhaps.<p>
What does that have to do with fashion? And why on earth is a hippie whitelight girl doing writing about something she has been running from all her life?<br>
Because it's a challenge.<br>
<a href="http://freefashionchallenge.com/">The Free Fashion Challenge</a>, to be exact.
A year, 365 days of not buying clothing, including underwear and socks.<p>
Yes, I'm prepping for this, and getting the items I know I'll need, like underwear, before I start the clock.
Since clothing swaps are allowed, I'm fudging and saying a one in/one out at a thrift shop is my "clothing swap."
Any clothing I am given will stay in a box until the challenge ends. Unless it finds a new home before then.
<p>
One of the style (not fashion) issues I have is dressing this other Robyn. She has a much more active and varied social life than I do. She likes colors I can't pull off. But she is getting better at color synchronization. She seems to have a different body shape, too. <br>
So, if that Robyn isn't me, why do I have clothes for her?
Answer as of last week is, I don't. (Dear local Goodwill, you are welcome.)<p>
I have clothing for this Robyn, in this part of the grand life journey. I don't have clothes for the Robyn I was, or an idealized image of what I could be.<br>
I have accepted what IS. What is NOW. And I'm wearing clothing that is appropriate.<p>
But why do we have these real wardrobes for our shadow selves? Why do we invest in a fantasy?<br>
It's the closet version of having hardback copies of books we will never read on our shelves, books meant to impress viewers, or tell a story about us that isn't realistic.<p>
A lacy less than knee length dress in my closet is as useful as a copy of the "Compleat Works of Shakespeare," a book my son got far more use out of than I. In 20 years, I referenced it five times for myself. <p>
Three pairs of trousers in suiting material, when I have a uniform for work, is silly. I kept one for interviews.
Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-35561950086293937862012-07-06T14:58:00.003-06:002012-07-06T14:58:47.757-06:00Wandering in a minimalist directionStill purging.
Still have books.
Many more CDs.<br>
<br>
I'm planning a theoretical move. What would I take if I were limited to a car?
Theoretical as I don't own a car.<br>
<br>
I've spent an obscene amount of time reading (are you ready for this?) style blogs. And home design blogs. What I learned for free was I dislike visual excess, don't need a suit and likely could do without 80 percent of what I own. I also learned that I am sentimental. I have things, "mere things, just stuff," as the minimal bloggers say, that I do, in fact love, have valued stories and serve as doorways to a past I'm likely to ignore.<br><br>
I won't rid myself of a small table my grandfather built. I won't give away signed books or CDs, or books related to my calling. I have a box of tie dyes made by my ex-husband. I'll keep the ones I still have. I'm even using them again, after a two-year break. <br>I have two metal folding chairs of an earlier vintage than I am. They graced performances at the Denver Folklore Center, and later Swallow Hill Music Association for some 50 years.
Three years ago, a higher-up at Swallow Hill decided they were not worth bringing back to the building after a summer concert series. I brought them home and used them as my dining chairs.
If I ever have to give them up, I know people who want them.<br><br>
For now, I know what table would be in my new home. And two of the chairs. And I'd have a futon, a real futon, again.<br><br>
I've gotten clothing under control, and I'm really condensing what I own there, while not giving up functionality.<br>
I'm giving up absurd imagined selves, out-of-sync perceptions of myself, and I'm no longer clothing a future or past me.
Liberating!
I even have empty drawers and lots of open space on the hanger rod.Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-66153487150410498002012-03-09T15:59:00.001-07:002012-07-06T14:27:58.903-06:00Blackout in the grocery storeMaxx Value food store opened in my neighborhood recently, to a fair amount of neighborhood concern.<br />
The previous tenant, Lucky Foods, is a union shop and the new one isn't.<br />
That is a topic for another day.<br>
People also wondered about selection, price and upkeep of the outside of the store.<br />
<br />
The outside was repainted, the parking lot repaved with recycled asphalt, and the place is pretty spiffy inside. Prices looked good.<br />
<br />
But the neighborhood power went out.<br />
After about five minutes of people quietly continuing their shopping, the manager threw us all out of the store.<br />
Now, I have waited out afternoon power outages in Colorado, where summer afternoon storms can knock power out with regularity.<br />
I've never been told to leave, but mangers have suggested coming back in 45 minutes.<br />
<br />
As we all walked out, probably 45 to 52 people, the manager kept saying, yes we need a generator.<br />
Having a back up generator with cold food is a great idea. <br />
But locally distributed energy, hosted on the grocery store property, would be a better insurance policy.<br />
The host could get all the power in an outage (written into the host and subscriber contract) and subscribers would get some credit if the outage went on for several hours.<br />
<br />
Community solar gardens can be reality in your neighborhood.<br />
In California, SB 843 opens the doors to this locally distributed electricity.<br />
Call your senator and representative and ask them to vote for 843.Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-27745135029823748702012-03-04T13:33:00.003-07:002012-03-04T14:23:25.235-07:00More minimalist wardrobeThis is an update on a remix of two challenges popular in the blogosphere,Six Items or Less and Project 333.<br /><br />I pulled the best guidelines of both and pulled them together to see what works for someone at the crossroads of minimalist and cheap.. er.... frugal. Add the desire to never be under of over dressed, and the desire to know most items will go together, and many fabulously, well. This is worth the few hours of planning (some of which have been fun).<br /><br />I'm trying to use 10 items of clothing for 30 days.<br />Launch day is March 10.<br /><br />For 30 days, I will wear outfits pulled from <br />1-dark wash jeans<br />2- green corduroy trousers<br />3- peacock blue sweater<br />4- forest green T-shirt, short sleeved <br />5-black long sleeved T-shirt<br />6- purple long sleeved T-shirt<br />7 and 8 to be determined<br />9- closed toe green and brown vegan earth shoes<br />10- my beloved black Chacos. I live in these. I bought them in 1998, resoled them three times and re-strapped once. Price per wear is about two-tenths of a cent. <br /><br /><br />Ultimately, I will have a few capsules (remember capsule wardrobes?) for the seasons, plus one for dressing up situations, which are about six per year for me these days.<br />Work clothes are pretty much a self-created uniform. That capsule is seasonless and will have three to five trousers and five tops. <br />That is for my bodywork business. <br /><br />At times, I appear as a representative of Solar Gardens Institiute, and those meetings are business casual. If I am speaking, I take it up a notch.<br />The rest of the time is my version of casual, and frankly, after 14 years in tie dye and a couple years of "hippy anarchist" colors, well, I might still be in black and green, but by golly, I can wear blue and purple, too.<br /><br />And yes, I still have tiedyed clothing. Mostly dresses and a few special shirts.<br />They were the work and gifts from my former spouse. Beautiful stuff, and will eventually be in memory boxes. <br />I do wear a few pieces here and there. Nothing like custom clothing that seems to be lasting forever.<br />One shirt is from the week we met- 17 years ago. It has one small hole. Outlasted the marriage!Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-28469818362786533932012-03-01T22:02:00.003-07:002012-03-01T22:18:43.790-07:00Prepping for the 10"My fashion style is 'woman who wears clothes so she won't be naked.' " --Molly Ivins, columnist and all around patriot.<br /><br />I relate to Molly's quip a little too well. <br /><br />30/10 grew out of reading style blogs. That means I'm actually going to think about what I wear, what it says and does it itch.<br />Pretty important, that last one.<br />I've been reading color theory, imagining what a reworked closet will look like in a year, and trying give myself a reality check about what I actually do.<br />In reality, my idea of dressing up is nice trousers, even jeans, tidy shirt and a blazer. I actually own two, one in ikat-like stripes, and one solid black.<br /><br />So, in. 10/30, I will experiment with simpler things. Belts. Scarves. Changing necklace lengths.<br />I will need to pick up a couple belts at the thrift store, and maybe an interesting necklace.<br /><br />I haven't decided on all the items, and might leave a couple to be selected later into the experiment.<br /><br />Dark jeans, olive cords, and one deep peacock blue sweater are making the list.<br /><br />So, from my closet, I do manage to not be naked. Can I look pulled together?<br />Could I discover a signature look?Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-24036896138910282832012-02-29T17:07:00.003-07:002012-02-29T17:37:58.085-07:00Six items or less, or a variant thereofLast November 15- December 15, I took part in<a href="http://www.sixitemsorless.com"> six items or less</a>, a challenge to take six main items from your closet and wear them exclusively for 30 days.<br />Accessories, undies, shoes, work or school uniforms and workout wear (worn only to work out, not to the library or public meeting) don't count.<br /><br />While I didn't take a slew of pictures, proof of my needing to evolve blogging skill, I did post somewhat regularly on the challenge Web site.<br /><br />I created a school wardrobe of three shirts and two pants, exempt from the list.<br />I pulled a black sheath dress, two long sleeve shirts, a short sleeve shirt, dark wash jeans, and a sweater.<br /><br />By day 26, I was thinking about the end, but really, aside from not loving one of my original choices ( which I selected in a frantic hour for the first five, while thinking about item six) I was not thinking about shopping, wearing something not in my six, or quitting.<br /><br />I was thinking about laundry.<br /><br />The simplest way to handle four tops and two bottoms is to hand wash. Rack drying has to be planned if the rack is inside, as the dry takes a bit longer than outside. Sometimes a day longer if humidity is high.<br />The six items challenge allows for exact multiples of items. I would have duplicates of anything that takes more than overnight to dry, or plan their use. For me, this was the jeans ( I did have two. One wore out just after the challenge) and sweater.<br /><br /><br />I did cull my closet, and I have once more, too.<br /><br />I'm developing my own challenge based on Six Items or Less and other similar projects.<br /><br />Starting March 10 and ending midnight April 10, I will have 10 items, including shoes, excluding undergarments, coats and accessories.<br /><br />My hope is to learn how to use what I already have but not look like the hippy kid I often resemble.<br /><br />I'm in the Bay Area. I have massage clients. I volunteer with a local paper and oversee social media for <a href="http://solargardens.org">Solar Gardens Institute</a>.<br />I will also be in class three days a week and have a couple weekend seminars, as well as attending a professional conference for SGI.<br /><br />I will exempt the massage clothing, as it is a uniform. My capsule wardrobe for it will remain small, at three tops, two bottoms.<br /><br />As part of blogging discipline, I will take photos.<br />I might even post them!Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-74240924368156434152010-11-10T12:29:00.003-07:002011-02-22T17:01:47.762-07:00Just start a solar garden already!I'm a renter. Always have been.<br />I support solar power. Always have.<br />Those two statements are NOT in conflict.<br /><br />Locally generated and distributed electricity reduces the amount of power that must be generated in the first place, since long transmission lines lose power as heat.<br />For a proposed Xcel Energy solar installation in Colorado's San Luis Valley, about 15 percent of the electricity would be lost in transmission.<br />So park PV panels close by, on roofs, as parking structures, in odd corners of industrial lots.<br />Gang up on utility bills and form a solar garden. You and nine people can literally change the world by changing your power source.<br />And profit is standing in the wings, not yet ready for her closeup, but ready to bring home green in two ways.<br />Talk to the folks at <a href="http://www.solargardens.org/">The Solar Gardens Institute</a>.Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-75953359092551194942010-08-21T21:08:00.003-06:002010-08-21T21:49:59.258-06:00Purging the bookshelf and moreIt had to happen someday. I had to let go of an absurd number of books.<br />I'm exhilarated that it is done, but getting there took, well, years.<br /><br />You see, I love books. I was raised to love books. None of my childhood books had crayon marks, if we bought them new.<br />Books and learning were our religion.<br />I love books; the information and stories between the covers, the potential in a craft or home improvement book, the promise of family meals in cookbooks.<br />One of my favorite bands has the line "oh there's nothing better/ than the smell of a used book store/ we'll get lost between the covers."<br />Thanks, Ezra and Keith!<br />(song is Old Things by Trout Fishing in America, a band named after a book.)<br /><br />But the books had to be set free. I am moving into a small place that already has an occupant, and very little room for stuff of mine.<br />Two years ago, my library numbered close to 1000 books. It is now four beer boxes.<br /><br />I'm reeling, in one way and feel liberated in another.<br />Now I have to use the library heavily, and that will keep me from reading the same 100 books again and again.<br /><br />I culled my CDs in a similar way.<br />I had acquired many from a previous employer, CDs from every artist who played over a seven year span. I was given the majority as a thank you for selling merchandise.<br />Some were from the free box.<br /><br />In many ways, culling clothing was easier. I don't have a shoe fetish. I don't have handbags or purses. I dress in what is kindly called an eccentric way.<br />Over the past two years, I've started dressing in black and green with the odd brown shirt.<br />Long way from the tie dye I lived in for 14 years!<br />One item took me by surprise.<br />I have a nice but holey warm sweater from Nepal. I bought it in Ft. Collins before a String Cheese Incident concert in 1998. I said then that it would bring me to Colorado to stay.<br />So, packing in an apartment in Englewood, Colo., I folded up the well worn sweater and started to drop in in the donations bag. <br />But I couldn't. I felt a wave of sadness at the idea. Honestly, I cried. over a sweater. (yes, pitiful, isn't it?)<br />But I listened to that impulse, and kept it.<br />A fleece took its place in the donation bag.<br /><br />What strangely emotion moments have you had during moves? What surprised you?Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-34059602785842346382010-06-05T20:39:00.003-06:002010-06-05T20:43:27.047-06:00Sunrise for community solar gardensOn an appropriately sunny Colorado afternoon, the community solar gardens act became reality.<br />With the flatirons in the distance, Gov. Bill Ritter signed HB1342 into law June 5.<br />“At SolarGardens.org, we see the Community Solar Gardens act as a step toward enabling everyone to own their own solar panels,” said Joy Hughes, founder of SolarGardens.org. “Even if you have shade on your roof or rent your house, you can subscribe to the sun, and if you move, your subscription moves with you.”<br />Rep. Claire Levy ,D-Boulder, author and House sponsor of the bill, credited a single resident with the idea of community solar.<br />He mentioned that his neighbors in the mountains above Boulder have good exposure, but don't necessarily have the money for their own system. The constituent, Solargardens.org board member Greg Ching, thought allowing panels on another owners property would help the mountain residents generate power for their homes.<br />Levy looked into the law, and saw several impediments to siting solar panels off one's own land.<br />At the same time, Sen. Suzanne Williams, D-Aurora, was looking for a way for her constituents to own collaborative solar. They joined forces and carried the Community Solar Gardens bill.<br />As Ritter signed it, he spoke of the leadership Colorado has taken in the new energy economy, and the 56 bills, of which Community Solar Gardens is the latest, that position Colorado as the national, and Ritter argues, international leader in new energy economies.<br />Allowing people to purchase subscriptions to solar gardens benefits the customers by allowing them access to benefits, from rebates to tax incentives, that homeowners get. The act also aids utility companies in achieving their state-mandated 30 percent renewable energy standard as customers sell excess power back into the grid. <br />David Eves of Xcel Energy said the act allows those who cannot Participate in Xcel's Solar Rewardsz program to do so.<br />“You have a lot of good ideas coming out of Boulder,” Eves said. “Thank you for pushing us.”<br />The Community Solar Gardens act will allow people to own solar panels that are not on their property.<br />Becoming part of a community solar garden brings clean, sustainable power to renters of homes, apartments or offices, condo owners, people with locations that are not ideal for solar panels or live in areas with homeowner associations that limit the number or location of panels.<br />A Community Solar Garden is at least 10 people, called subscribers, who own panels at a site. <br />HB 1342 directs the Colorado Public Utilities Commission to create rules that require public utilities to extend rebates and other offers available to homeowners who install photovoltaic panels to these groups.<br />One of the benefits for the utilities is more renewable power generated in areas where it is used and sold to the grid.<br />State Rep. Claire Levy, D-Boulder, sponsored the bill in the House and State Sen. Suzanne Williams, D-Aurora, sponsored it in the Senate.<br />U.S. Rep. Mark Udall, D-El Dorado Springs, is sponsoring a similar bill at the federal level, the Solar Uniting Neighborhoods (SUN) Act.<br />For more information on Community Solar Gardens, visit www.solargardens.org.Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-56893280468662471732010-06-03T12:10:00.000-06:002010-06-03T12:12:45.873-06:00Solar rebates and benefits for all in ColoradoGov. Bill Ritter signs HB 1342 into law at noon Saturday, June 25 on the top level of the parking garage at 15th and Pearl streets in Boulder.<br />“At SolarGardens.org, we see the Community Solar Gardens act as a step toward enabling everyone to own their own solar panels,” said Joy Hughes, founder of SolarGardens.org. “Even if you have shade on your roof or rent your house, you can subscribe to the sun, and if you move, your subscription moves with you.”<br />The bill will allow people to own solar panels that are not on their property.<br />Becoming part of a community solar garden brings clean, sustainable power to renters of homes, apartments or offices, condo owners, people with locations that are not ideal for solar panels or live in areas with homeowner associations that limit the number or location of panels.<br />A Community Solar Garden is at least 10 people, called subscribers, who own panels at a site. <br />HB 1342 directs the Colorado Public Utilities Commission to create rules that require public utilities to extend rebates and other offers available to homeowners who install photovoltaic panels to these groups.<br />One of the benefits for the utilities is more renewable power generated in areas where it is used and sold to the grid.<br />State Rep. Claire Levy, D-Boulder, sponsored the bill in the House and State Sen. Suzanne Williams, D-Aurora, sponsored it in the Senate.<br />U.S. Rep. Mark Udall, D-El Dorado Springs, is sponsoring a similar bill at the federal level, the Solar Uniting Neighborhoods (SUN) Act.<br /><br />For more information on Community Solar Gardens, visit www.solargardens.org.Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-9667142750228562352010-05-14T18:07:00.002-06:002010-05-14T18:35:31.351-06:00Take out withoutA few months ago, a new web site started up promoting the bring your own bag mentality at restaurants.<br />I started bringing stainless steel straws and my own cutlery about three years ago, and maybe the thought of bringing my own take away containers flitted across my mind.<br />And I probably thought, "once I start driving again, I'll do that."<br />Three years later, I'm still walking, but finally remembering containers, on occasion.<br />Until I ran across <a href="http://www.takeoutwithout.com/">Take Out Without </a>.<br />The idea is to bring a container for leftovers or take out and make it as common as bringing a bag to the grocer's.<br />Easy? Seems so. I'm good if I'm planning on going out or getting to the salad bar, but when I run late, I still wind up with a plastic 6 or styro container.<br />Except now, each one I see reminds me to be prepared in the future.Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-19701676547667989822010-02-03T12:10:00.004-07:002010-02-03T13:27:59.123-07:00My choices have changedWell, I spent three years working two jobs, one during the week with the occasional weekend coverage needed; and one each Friday and Saturday night , adding Wednesdays in the summer.<br />That is a lot of time spent doing something, and I felt both were a calling.<br />I wrote for a newspaper for five years, and in December 2009, they let me go.<br />One month later, the music venue dissolved my position.<br />So now I am drawing unemployment and getting emails that read, "we have selected a candidate with more closely matched qualifications."<br />People, that was for stocking shelves at a grocery store.<br />However, I now know how to rewrite that part of my resume, and I may yet become a wage slave again.<br />However, I created a wrench and tossed it in the works of my unemployment claims.<br />I told the state I was laid off from my part time job.<br />This means my benefit amount needs to be recalculated, because the original calculation was based on my full time job.<br /><br />I have to start all over, wait, no that would be easy. I have to "reopen" my claim, which means keep dialing into a number that might, or might not, have real humans on the other end.<br /><br />This seems like a chance to put some of the unemployed professionals to work handling these claims.<br /><br />Update: I'm back on hold, up to an hour, the recording says. Wish me luck!Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-45212376787435647362009-04-26T12:22:00.003-06:002009-04-26T12:35:17.751-06:00Walk to defeat ALS and Folkies For EricNo one knows me long before I start sharing music with them.<br />Music is a driving force in my life. And musicians are special people to me.<br /> I've had the great joy of knowing Eric Lowen, of Lowen and Navarro, as singer and songwriter with a gift of storytelling without being maudlin.<br />You might know his big hit, "We Belong." As in Pat Benetar, 'fess up, children of Fast Times at Ridgemont High.<br />Eric lives with ALS, a degenerative disease that steals your mobility inch by inch.<br />ALS is an evil existance, and I for one will not stand idly by and let it continue without research and support for the folks and families dealing with it.<br />So I'm walking Sept 12 in honor of Eric and his light with the Rocky Mountain Capter of the ALS Association.<br />Thier slogan is walk because you can. I'm walking because I cannot NOT do it.<br /><br />http://walks.alscolorado.org/index.php?s=42&group_id=41<br /><br />and www.lownav.com<br />Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-66144252705545126742009-04-26T12:13:00.002-06:002009-04-26T12:22:38.668-06:00Getting FrugalSo the time has come for me to get serious about grocery prices.<br /> List? Helps.<br />Coupons? Not so much, as I rarely use name brand. I need a Sunflower Market 20c off a pound of almonds or some such.<br />So, I'm designing a price book.<br />Basically, a price book lists an item, say, tofu, and the price at each store.<br />A page (and the template I'm using is 3x5: index card sized) has the item at the top, rows for the stores (four in my situation for now) that list the size, cost, and unit price.<br />like this:<br /><div style="text-align: left;">Denver Tofu<br /></div>Vitamin Cottage 1 lb 2.09<br />Sunflower --not available<br />Whole Foods/ Louisiana Pearl--1 lb 1.99<br />WF /HR 1 lb 2.09<br />King Soopers 1 lb 1.99<br /><br />This allows a shopper to know straightaway where the deal is...and if you should pass in a given store.<br />I will also place a note on travel time. All trips cost the same on the train/bus, but the time involved can be diverse.<br /><br />Anyone using a price book?<br /><br /><br />My template idea was taken from Dollar Stretcher:<br />http://www.stretcher.com/stories/09/09apr06j.cfmRobynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-1857537772145380812009-04-02T23:00:00.002-06:002009-04-02T23:04:05.019-06:00Pete Seeger should be nominated for a Nobel Peace PrizeAnd it was my metalhead son who sent me the petition.<br />Here's the link:<br /> <a href="http://www.petitionthem.com/default.asp?sect=detail&pet=3774" target="_blank">http://www.petitionthem.com/<wbr>default.asp?sect=detail&pet=<wbr>3774</a><br />So why do I think Seeger should be honored so?<br />His work with social justice, environmental causes and his spreading of peace through his music for so many years.<br /> And let's not forget how he handled McCarthy's witch hunts.Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-7859949487080711932009-02-21T10:42:00.003-07:002009-02-21T10:52:50.186-07:00Well, Feb. 21 is this blog's new yearOr, I fail at posting weekly.<br />I've had my son here for several weeks and have been out of pocket. Even took my second week of vacation to hang out with him<br />Having a late-teen son is a blizzard of think-on-your-feet choices.<br />He wants a purple stripe in his hair? OK. All of it? Not so OK.<br />He has the stripe. Looks good.<br />Luckily my years of communist hippie vegetarian indoctrination ...er... modeling healthy food choices.. have paid off with a son who eats salads at all meals and has no great desire for large amounts of meat.<br />He goes through yogurt, however.<br /><br />More importantly, he's mentally creating his life beyond living with parents.<br />He's delaying secondary education. He wants to work in the music industry as a tech and eventually be a sound engineer. His big dream right now is running a recording studio/distribution network for bands who don't want to go the A&R / big label route.<br /><br />I discovered what it is like to simply consult and have little control over the decisions made.<br />This is my time for letting go of the child I bore and accept the almost adult I raised.<br /><br />Thanks, Kiddo, for reminding me that choices have size.Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-55598206495712554202008-12-28T09:54:00.002-07:002008-12-28T10:05:05.726-07:00Made it through the gift seasonDecember holds four birthdays, Chanukkah, Yule/Solstice and the big giftmas.<br />I survived and managed to gift everyone who needed one.<br />Planting trees was big this year through www.mokugift.com.<br />One recipient was so happy they planted 10 more as a gift to the planet.<br /><br />My not-so-inner-hippy was pleased.<br /><br />I was choosing between a floral arrangement (very planet unfriendly- roses from where?) and this. I decided the recipients were either savvy enough or had their own inner-hippy ready to be channeled, or simply were not wanting things to care for, store and keep up with.<br /><br />For the physical gifts, such as for my young nieces, Sweetie and Kiddo, I used 6 square feet of wrapping, half of that reused.<br />I don't have to seek out that one different roll of paper this year.<br /> I actually have too much paper at once.<br />I see drawer/shelf lining in my future.Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-20582166020149683592008-12-08T20:40:00.003-07:002010-06-06T00:46:38.446-06:00John Lennon and life examinedI've said on boards that I had my last hamburger when John Lennon was alive. I don't remember the exact date I put the cow = sentient life equation together, so in the sadness of memory today, I also thank Lennon for pushing people to look at why they do things the way they do...and offering options. It pushed me to look at what I thought was basic, eating, and make it a statement of my own beliefs.<br />I try not to push it on others. I will answer questions, share recipes and hints.<br />I do think that the reliance on animals for food has gotten out of hand.<br /> Who orders a 3.5 oz steak at a restaurant?<br /><br />But Lennon was an icon for me. I had a brother old enough to remember the Beatles clearly, and a stepmother with the full catalog. For a young teen, his words and stances were heady stuff.<br />It's trite, perhaps, but we can give peace a chance, because invasion sure isn't working out.<br />I probably would not have read Mao without Lennon, although I had read Marx by then. And I'm slogging through Trotsky now. Ugh.<br />I was intensely interested in Utopian ideals and communities, and reading the dry formulas they sprang from was eye opening.<br />I also give his soul mate, Yoko kudos for forcing her concept of art on the mass public.<br />She might sound somewhat like a tortured goat, but you have to ask WHY people would express themselves this way.<br /><br />Ono chose a companion for Lennon while they were separated in the 1970s. May Pang is now peddling a book about John's "Lost Weekend" and her relationship with him.<br />I can't even begin to understand how one woman could "choose" the woman her husband was to have an affair with..and I can't comprehend why a man would go along with it.<br />But I can wonder how on earth that other woman can trade on a dead man so many years later.<br /><br />What I'd like to see is more musicians and artists with a holy anger like Lennon's making a mark.<br /> So, no choice to balance but some homework:<br /> Who has that sacred rage that you love? Franti? RATM? Dead Prez?<br />Who is speaking truth to power in an obseved way that makes even the pop world take note?Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-88070044743877703352008-10-09T16:52:00.005-06:002008-10-09T17:11:19.667-06:00Continuing car free and food issuesLooks like the old dependable car is in need of far more repair than it is worth.<br /><br />So the Sweetie and I will continue with being car free for a while longer.<br />I last wrote about groceries, and my interim fix is to grab a bag of groceries when convenient, or if I'm out and about with a wheeled friend.<br />Cat food and litter are definitely "borrowed transport" items.<br /><br />Living in a 'burb, I have a lot of grocery choices: two traditional store, one of which is remotely affordable, two natural foods stores in the neighboring 'burb, but the travel time gets really long, so I hit Vitamin Cottage when I'm in that area. Whole Paycheck is out of my league for a good while.<br />Walking in Downtown Denver, where homeless and high rent flats rub shoulders, I noticed there are no real grocery stores, or even the stripped down market concept aside from a couple foodie-porn places.<br /><br />So what if I lived there? Would I have to trek out to a grocery close to the rail line (Broadway and Alameda) ?<br />Would I have to pay the $10 home delivery charge for Shop at Home?<br /><br />I ran a cross an abstract for a study on food outlets near high schools in the United States:<br />http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B73H6-4RM89B2-1&_user=10&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&view=c&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=0b42c33bad3b6abb5216c74cbf6a0b4f<br /><br />which basically says that lower income and non white majority schools have more junk nearby, negating school food policies.<br />What that also says is that lower income areas have less healthy options.<br /><br />Or how about we feed our people before we buy bullets?<br /><span class="trackbacks-link">http://www.typepad.com/t/trackback/2603625/24917372</span><br /><br />Look in any trash bin outside and marvel at the food we waste.Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-59627723090655509702008-08-31T14:16:00.002-06:002008-08-31T14:27:02.123-06:00Groceries while carlessNo deep questions today, just a bit o' reflection.<br />I'm procrastinating getting groceries because I have to do it on the bus.<br />Suddenly car-light looks like a lot of car!<br />Luckily, I don't need too much, and I plan on keeping it that way, so a hefty backpack will have to do.<br />Add my fading enthusiasm for plastic containers, and well, I could be in for a workout.<br />But that's OK, work should use up some stored calories.<br />I have two choices of close by groceries, both the same chain. One has the ever-tempting Taco Bell in the parking lot. That's the shorter ride, too, but the store is less well maintained.<br />Well, off to strap on the pedometer for grins and giggles.<br />How much does one hippie walk while fetching groceries?<br />I'll let you know.<br />And while I'm off, can someone recommend the best grocery cart for urban freaks?Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-74341574857800505662008-08-23T15:58:00.000-06:002008-08-23T16:15:04.164-06:00PlasticWhen I was younger, <span style="font-style: italic;">"paper or plastic?"</span> became a common question.<br />In the interest of saving trees, people promoted plastic bags.<br /> If only we'd skipped directly to reusable bags then.<br />There is so much focus on bags, that we forget the rafts of polymers we have everywhere else.<br />Own a bottle of shampoo?<br />What's your computer casing? Or your telephone?<br />Even waxed paper is really lined with a plastic.<br /> Some cars are plastics.<br />I signed a pledge about two years ago to refrain from buying bottled water.<br />I used a Lexan bottle. Bisophenol A. Yay. So I saved up and got a Sigg.<br />I now have brightly colored craft storage with stickers all over the outside.<br /><br /><br />So I knew, intellectually, that the average house has loads of plastic.<br />I've been using up plastic-packaged goods in the bathroom. I felt like I was starting to see a difference. Wooden soap dish, bars of shampoo and conditioner, liquid soap bought by the half gallon and diluted (Dilute, dilute, dilute, OK!)<br /><br /> Then I cleaned in the kitchen today, a put off for many months clear-out.<br />Wow. And gross.<br /><br />I buy a lot of groceries in bulk, which means plastic bags when you don't take your own containers.<br />I reuse the deli-style containers until a fatal crack develops. I was happy to see how many glass jars I had in use.<br />But I have a lot of plastic, some of it rather high quality.<br />Some will get donated to whichever of my three charities calls next.<br />Some I will keep because the size is convenient, but I will be eying glass canisters for the contents.<br />I want to donate whole the plastic is still high quality, so that someone will get good use out of it.<br />I also had lots of plastic bags of a few ounces of this and a few cups of that.<br />Now I have a lot of labeled jars, and this looks better to me.<br /><br />What small change would you like to make in how you live?Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-4753607259151912832008-08-19T15:53:00.000-06:002008-08-19T15:58:19.063-06:00What would you do?Alright, I don't think I have a vast audience, yet, but I'd like to see if I can get a reader or two engaged.<br />I'll post a dilema and ask you for your coice, and how you got there.<br /><br />Simple?<br />Here goes:<br /><br />A book store has two copies of a book you really want.<br />One copy, soft cover, has damage on a few pages, bcause we all look though books we are considering, and is full price.<br />The next copy is hard cover and about the same price through on the bargin table.<br />You pick up the hardcover and at checkout discover someone has swapped the price sticker.<br /><br />What do you do, and why?Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-78221128937166151342008-08-17T22:26:00.000-06:002008-08-17T22:45:21.173-06:00Is every choice either/or?I don't think every choice has a perfect answer, and I doubt that every choice is either/or.<br />I think that why you make your choices, or avoid them, leads you to your best answer of the moment.<br /> For example, let's say a person, Sam, is standing in the grocery and that person has organic agriculture as an ideal. But, Sam has recently started reading about food miles.<br />So Sam is standing in a less than perfect suburban grocery store looking at organic strawberries from six states away and conventional strawberries from within a 200-mile radius.<br />Prices are similar, freshness appears similar.<br />What does Sam do? Does she select the organic that used a good amount of gasoline to arrive, or the more local crop grown with fertilizers and pesticides?<br />Is there another option?<br />I say there is. Unless Sam has to have strawberries for something, look at what else is on offer. Organic, in-state peaches? Local raspberries?<br />Sam picks up the local conventionally-grown berries and drops them in her basket.<br />She believes that cutting down on the transportation is more important than the cropland use.<br /><br />Personally, I'd look for the most local fruit available, allowing for my undeveloped appreciation of most melons.<br />Berries rule, but peaches are blessings.<br /><br />The local farmers market has a particular vendor who is inclined to be less than truthful about his products.<br />He's also got better prices.<br />Do I boycott him for passing Washington cherries off as Western Slope Colorado cherries, or do I just pay a lot of attention?<br />Depends. Is the West Slope fruit grower at the market that week? Are his prices in line with the questionable vendor?<br />If so, Forte Farms will get my hard earned money.<br />If not, well, I value the farmers market concert over the grocery where Sam is picking over berries. I might pay more at Forte (and I plan to buy a box of frozen cherries at the end of season). I might skip cherries if it is not the end of season.<br />But, I might decide that week that any fresh fruit is better than none, and the peaches are not in yet.<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Is this the best way we can grow our good fruit? --<span style="font-size:78%;">Woody Guthrie</span></span>Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7560430169267134295.post-75444958696417682732008-08-17T22:13:00.000-06:002008-08-17T22:24:08.909-06:00Balance what choices?Welcome to Balance Your Choices, I'm glad you are here.<br /><br />I have been imagining this blog for a couple of years and finally took the plunge.<br />I spend an inordinate amount of time calculating the ethical cost of living in a consumer society, and balancing Choice A against Choice B or C or D.<br />I cheat, and buy second hand, repurpose items and generally do the fussy greenie dance that is living in the industrialized world.<br /><br />What I discovered is I have to rank my ethics. Gulp. How do you chose which ethical stance is more important than another?<br />I had to deconstruct WHY I make the choices I do.<br />So, me.<br /> I'm fortyish, vegetarian, pretty crunchy, would love to experiment with an urban offgrid home one day. I walk or use public transportation. I bring my own bags 99.9 percent of the time, including produce bags.<br /><br />I've been blessed to moderate a vegetarian board since 1999 over at www.hipforums.com, and that experience has been helpful in molding the decision process when I have a choice between, say, leather or nylon for shoes.<br /><br />So, again , welcome to Balance Your Choices.Robynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14464861781121787055noreply@blogger.com0