To learn how to live more simply...to soak up so much vitamin D this summer that I can bottle the shit...to learn my body again, the in's and out's, my strengths and weaknesses, and push myself both physically and mentally...to work alongside my husband in the outdoors and do work that is meaningful to me...to truly enjoy the weekends and explore places that we've never seen before...to feel the pang of homesickness that makes me realize how much I love my family and friends but also know that I carry them in my heart wherever I travel...to hear the whispers of nature and to learn the natural rhythm of life.
These are the things I aspire to this year in our new adventure.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Monday, January 11, 2010
Actions and words
There are dreams and there are realities. Where the two intersect seem to be an infinite area of gray. The grass IS always greener on the other side, but is the other side's grass still greener than it is here when I get there?
Jake is starting to have second thoughts on leaving it all...SLC, our jobs, our family and friends...our stability and comfort zone, our contentment and indecisivness. If noone follows their dreams or leaves their comfort zone then nothing will ever change, right? But are we the ones to attempt to make change or are we the ones that stay the same but always to continue to talk about changing?
What will happen when our season is up and we have to decide what to do next? Will things 'just work out' for us or will we be screwed, regretting this decision and wondering what in the hell we were thinking by quitting our lives to chase rainbows. But then again, we've always talked about chasing rainbows, it's seemed like the thing to do...we are really good talkers but when it comes to taking action we seem to get quieter. Can our actions be as loud as our words? Will we do this??
It seems that each day I get less and less interested in evolving technology for the extent that it makes me feel less human. The more advanced our world gets the less it thinks it needs nature...the less we think nature is a part of us the more likely we are to destroy it to better advance our technology. And this cycle continues until we no longer recognize ourselves in the natural world and we eventually destroy ourselves in the process. Why do we feel like in order to become better, happier people we have to ruin everything around us? It just amazes me that there is such a disconnect between our values and actions...our everyday routines and the impact that they have on future generations, because really, who thinks about the difference it makes whether we buy a Big Mac for dinner or bake some locally grown squash?? Who thinks about the factory farmed cow that, rather than grazing in open pastures, was fed corn and other cow parts...and that the amount of waste produced by all these cows stuffed into a small space will pollute the water and air that surrounds them?? And that because so many people want so many Big Macs that more and more factory farms go up and less open grazing occurs and more hormones and antibiotics are used, cause cows aren't meant to live like this...so all the Big Mac eaters are also getting a bonus of hormones and antibiotics and are not only buying a Big Mac...they're also buying into stock of these factory farmers that keep the cycle going...
And it also kinda pisses me off that most of the food we eat comes from much more exotic places than I'll ever be able to visit...WTF?
So anyways...
Stay tuned for more exciting internal struggles and debates as to whether we are (more like 'I am') going crazy or if we are following our realistic dreams...
Jake is starting to have second thoughts on leaving it all...SLC, our jobs, our family and friends...our stability and comfort zone, our contentment and indecisivness. If noone follows their dreams or leaves their comfort zone then nothing will ever change, right? But are we the ones to attempt to make change or are we the ones that stay the same but always to continue to talk about changing?
What will happen when our season is up and we have to decide what to do next? Will things 'just work out' for us or will we be screwed, regretting this decision and wondering what in the hell we were thinking by quitting our lives to chase rainbows. But then again, we've always talked about chasing rainbows, it's seemed like the thing to do...we are really good talkers but when it comes to taking action we seem to get quieter. Can our actions be as loud as our words? Will we do this??
It seems that each day I get less and less interested in evolving technology for the extent that it makes me feel less human. The more advanced our world gets the less it thinks it needs nature...the less we think nature is a part of us the more likely we are to destroy it to better advance our technology. And this cycle continues until we no longer recognize ourselves in the natural world and we eventually destroy ourselves in the process. Why do we feel like in order to become better, happier people we have to ruin everything around us? It just amazes me that there is such a disconnect between our values and actions...our everyday routines and the impact that they have on future generations, because really, who thinks about the difference it makes whether we buy a Big Mac for dinner or bake some locally grown squash?? Who thinks about the factory farmed cow that, rather than grazing in open pastures, was fed corn and other cow parts...and that the amount of waste produced by all these cows stuffed into a small space will pollute the water and air that surrounds them?? And that because so many people want so many Big Macs that more and more factory farms go up and less open grazing occurs and more hormones and antibiotics are used, cause cows aren't meant to live like this...so all the Big Mac eaters are also getting a bonus of hormones and antibiotics and are not only buying a Big Mac...they're also buying into stock of these factory farmers that keep the cycle going...
And it also kinda pisses me off that most of the food we eat comes from much more exotic places than I'll ever be able to visit...WTF?
So anyways...
Stay tuned for more exciting internal struggles and debates as to whether we are (more like 'I am') going crazy or if we are following our realistic dreams...
Saturday, January 9, 2010
The explanation
If you are reading this you probably know that Jake and I have decided to quit our jobs, move out of Salt Lake City, and learn how to farm. If you are wondering how we came to this decision check out Jake's blog (eachnewyear.wordpress.com), if you are wondering why we came to this decision keep reading, and if you don't care then you should probably check out a different blog...
After reading "The Omnivore's Dilemma" a few years back we came to the official decision to be vegetarians. It wasn't that we blindly accepted every word Michael Pollen wrote, but because his words reinforced the unease we felt for our current food system and it opened the door to researching more. Ever since then we have read books, watched documentaries, and discussed our reasons for not eating meat (specifically factory farmed, hormone and antibiotic infused meat). But it is time to do more. We have spend plenty of time talking about our values when it comes to sustainability and supporting local businesses. We buy local and organic when we can, but the time has come where that is not enough. It is time to really be a part of the solution, beyond supporting local farmers and abstaining from factory farm meat. It is time to be a local farmer.
What do we know about gardening and farming? Well, pretty much nothing. Other than a community garden plot that we had a few years ago and the very little that we helped out in Jake's mom's garden we are pretty clueless when it comes to getting our hands dirty. That is why we chose WWOOF'ing as one of our options for our new year dice roll. WWOOF'ing should be able to give us a great opportunity to get in with real farmers and gardeners who know what they're doing. We spent almost an entire afternoon looking over WWOOF farms that allow pets so that we can take our two dogs and possibly our cat with us. So far we have heard back from about half, most of which aren't ok with 2 big dogs but we have found one in Wyoming that are fine with both of our dogs and our cat. As of this point in time it sounds like we'll be heading up to Leiter, Wyoming in April to spend the season with the Mitzel's on their 400+ acre ranch to learn organic gardening and farming. We don't yet know what we are going to do when the season ends. Will we come back to Salt Lake and get office work again? Will we continue WWOOF'ing around the country (with or without our pets)? Will we end up homeless and destitute? Ummm...hopefully not. But we do know that it is time to get out there and live, to start living our lives aligned with our values...and to stop working away in an office every day while the sun and dirt and fresh air awaits.
After reading "The Omnivore's Dilemma" a few years back we came to the official decision to be vegetarians. It wasn't that we blindly accepted every word Michael Pollen wrote, but because his words reinforced the unease we felt for our current food system and it opened the door to researching more. Ever since then we have read books, watched documentaries, and discussed our reasons for not eating meat (specifically factory farmed, hormone and antibiotic infused meat). But it is time to do more. We have spend plenty of time talking about our values when it comes to sustainability and supporting local businesses. We buy local and organic when we can, but the time has come where that is not enough. It is time to really be a part of the solution, beyond supporting local farmers and abstaining from factory farm meat. It is time to be a local farmer.
What do we know about gardening and farming? Well, pretty much nothing. Other than a community garden plot that we had a few years ago and the very little that we helped out in Jake's mom's garden we are pretty clueless when it comes to getting our hands dirty. That is why we chose WWOOF'ing as one of our options for our new year dice roll. WWOOF'ing should be able to give us a great opportunity to get in with real farmers and gardeners who know what they're doing. We spent almost an entire afternoon looking over WWOOF farms that allow pets so that we can take our two dogs and possibly our cat with us. So far we have heard back from about half, most of which aren't ok with 2 big dogs but we have found one in Wyoming that are fine with both of our dogs and our cat. As of this point in time it sounds like we'll be heading up to Leiter, Wyoming in April to spend the season with the Mitzel's on their 400+ acre ranch to learn organic gardening and farming. We don't yet know what we are going to do when the season ends. Will we come back to Salt Lake and get office work again? Will we continue WWOOF'ing around the country (with or without our pets)? Will we end up homeless and destitute? Ummm...hopefully not. But we do know that it is time to get out there and live, to start living our lives aligned with our values...and to stop working away in an office every day while the sun and dirt and fresh air awaits.
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