Everyday Life with Seven In the Ocean – February 28

Hi friends, hi readers.

For some reason, it has only recently occurred to me that this place is part blog and part story-sharing platform – but I’m not so great at the “blog” part! I get excited about things (that are related to the stories) and then forget to write them down, or I write them down and forget to publish them! There are moments in between the Sustainability Success stories or Wake-Up Wednesday Wins that I should share, but don’t.

So, here’s my solution: Everyday Life with Seven In the Ocean. This is what fuels me up to do the story-sharing!

Package-Free Plunder

For anyone who has gotten on-board the plastic- or package-free train, you will understand the feeling that is achieved after visiting multiple shops and coming out with the item you wanted but with no extra packaging. It is hard to explain why this is so satisfying. Maybe because it feels like you’re beating the system? That you’ve won? Or that you haven’t paid for unnecessary weight and material?

Whatever the reason, it is immensely empowering and I got to feel this feeling on Saturday. I had to run a few errands and chose to pay visits to three local, independent, and – I am almost certain – entirely women-run businesses in my town: FILL: Kelowna’s Refill Store, Chickpeace Zero Waste Refillery, and Portia Ella. On my list?

• dishwashing soap (FILL)
• dishwashing cloths (FILL)
• a reusable baking mat (Chickpeace)
• lotion bars (Portia-Ella)

As luck would have it, I ticked off everything on my shopping list and was able to avoid packaging almost altogether (save for a bit of paper). Not only that, I reused a container for the soap, finally found lotion bars (can you believe it? lotion! without a bottle!), and had lovely conversations with employees at all three establishments. It was, in short, amazing!

Visiting these types of shops is a reminder about why it is sooooooo important to support small business:

• The service is typically way, way better (and at these three shops, that is 100% true!)
• Your money stays local
• You are supporting your community, directly.
• By shopping package-free, you’re saving the planet and your wallet*

*I know it doesn’t seem like it, but it’s a long-game approach. By investing in a $20 reusable, silicon baking mat, or two concentrated bars of lotion, or $12 of dishwashing liquid, I’m saving myself from having to buy rolls of parchment paper, bottles of dishwashing soap, or lotion more frequently. Less packaging, long-term savings…it’s all a win in my book.

Plant-Based Snack-Attack

While I’ve oscillated in the last few years between food lifestyles, I have a preference or general tendency towards plant-based eating. A long time ago (it feels like, circa 2011…) I went fully vegan and to this day, have never felt more alive, whole, and complete as during that time. It’s true!

Recently, I had an upper gastrointestinal endoscopy taken to fully determine a celiac diagnosis (TMI?) and so, I’ve become aware – more than ever – of how what I eat truly impacts my body. At the risk of completely obliterating my reading audience, I will say that there is nothing quite like taking a glimpse inside your own inner workings to make you appreciate that fact. >.<

So, it was with much excitement that I undertook a few gluten-free and vegan food projects this weekend, at the behest of finding satisfying, plant-based snacks that would satisfy both mine and Jan’s snack-ish tendencies. I have to thank my friend, Shauna, at The Vibrant Veggie, for helping solve my snack problems! Let it be known that plant-based feta and chickpea-flour-fries are the perfect antidote to what ails ya. Also, bacon-style tofu is a winner (photos forthcoming).

• 

• 

Seedy Sunday

This weekend, I finally got my seed-planting behind in gear and got a bunch going! At first, I was fretting over how to plant, when to plant, what to plant…it was paralyzing. As you’re probably aware, I’m not the biggest fan of plastic, so I didn’t want those flimsy plastic plant pots. But did I really need pots at all? I was hell-bent on investing in a soil blocker, but couldn’t find any in town. The stress, it was real! (“Oh brother,” you might be thinking) Then, my partner Jan suggested: “Why not use egg cartons? We have a bunch of those!”

Duh. Of course. Egg cartons! Fill each cell with soil, plunk a few seeds in each cell, cover with more soil, mist with water, and Bob’s your uncle (in this case, though, Bob is my dad :)).

As for the how and what dilemmas, those were easily solved once I calmed down and looked at my seeds, thought about what I wanted to grow (and why) and remembered that I have the green thumbs necessary to make seeds turn into seedlings.

I run a small juice business and part of my dream/mission with that enterprise is to be able to make use of local produce: either home-grown or from the incredible network of small farms in the Okanagan. So, this year’s garden delights will include the things I love to juice (carrots, celery, cucumbers), plus flowers (because they are pretty and for the bees), herbs (three kinds of basil is not too much basil, right?), and green, leafy things (for us and our chickens).

For me, gardening is about:

• Creating food security and resiliency
• Lowering my plastic footprint
• Communing with nature
• Giving back to Mother Earth
• Keepin’ it local!
• Saving money
• Improving physical and mental health

In short: gardening is one of my favourite activities and it hits on so many things I am passionate about. Today’s seed-planting extravaganza was, therefore, infinitely satisfying!

• 

• 

• 

• 

Hiking Around

I live in the Okanagan Valley of BC, Canada and let me tell you: it is a special place. Frankly, everywhere I’ve ever had the privilege of living is a special place! I fall in love with my home places and the Okanagan has been no exception. It’s similar in weather patterns to what I’ve experienced in New York, Maine, and Vermont but it’s much dryer and in some ways, milder. Take today: it’s the last day of February and already in Kelowna, we’re hitting mud season! Of course, two days ago, it was snowing. Spring is certainly almost upon us.

One way of rolling around in gratitude for this beautiful blue planet we live on is, of course, to go outside and enjoy it. That is precisely what we did today: together with some friends of ours, we embarked on a hike nearby. It was just warm enough that by climbing uphill, we broke a sweat, but cool enough that our mid-point break was refreshing.

The area we were hiking in had recently (a few years ago) experienced a man-made fire, which adds something to the landscape. Ground vegetation is making its way back (thanks in large part to replanting efforts) but the evidence of fire is still there: burnt tree trunks, fallen limbs, charcoal ground into the mud. Interwoven among the burnt bits though, are huge Ponderosa Pines, fringy cedars bordering a still-partially-frozen river, and ancient fallen timbers whose trunks have been twisted with age. Above our heads, eagles soar along unseen wind thermals, doing flips as if to show off their winged prowess to us two-legged, wing-less humans.

Getting out into nature is one way of remembering why it is I do the environmental activism work I do. The whole damn point is to protect nature and preserve it for future generations. I don’t think any of us want to go for a hike along trails littered with garbage, but that’s the future we’ll get if we don’t cut out our plastic habit.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Sunset on a Swell Sunday

Today was topped off by bowls of hot, laksa soup shared with our hiking friends and made by the sweetest, tiniest little restaurant in Kelowna. Jan introduced me to Mad Mango 5 years ago when I first came to the Okanagan and similar to today, we enjoyed it after a brisk hike. Warm food after a day spent in the chill of a pre-spring day is such a good combination of feelings!

And, the cherry on top? A delicious, silky-smooth (and so dynamic!) sunset: something this area is well-known for, year-round. It doesn’t matter where I am – a good sunset is a good sunset and they really, never get old! A sunset is like dessert for the soul.

So there you have it, folks: seeds, hikes, friends, soup, and sunsets. All told, these ingredients are enough to recharge me for the week ahead. It’s a new month coming up, too! So many things to look forward to.

As always, I’m eager to hear from you: how was your weekend and what did you do to recharge?