The other day I was talking to a relative of mine about The City of Ember and this relative was lamenting the environmental state of the planet. She tells me, “Well, that’s why I bought my Prius. I had to do something to help our planet.” Oi. I could come up with a dozen things that she could do to help the planet, but the best she could come up with is buying a car. Don’t get me wrong - I’m glad she bought the Prius. Clearly, buying a Prius is better than buying a Hummer, for instance, or any of the typical oversize, gas-guzzling SUVs that my suburban neighbors think they somehow need. But the whole idea that that is the only something she could come up with to help the environment was depressing.
So today I read an article in one of my favorite blogs, The True Face of Birth, entitled Is Brown the New Green? Good timing. I’m particularly loving the link she provides to this blog. If we can all aspire to being Brown, than maybe our world just might survive.
In honor of the brown, a quote from George Costanza:
So, anyway, if you think about it, manure is not really that bad a word. I mean, it’s ‘newer’, which is good, and a ‘ma’ in front of it, which is also good. Ma-newer.
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…Mr. Customs Man!” (Good old Arlo - I just love that guy).
So, I’ve been wondering for several weeks now if it would be likely that I could get these two pumpkins through customs in a barrel. Anyone think that might be possible? Because it sure would save us a lot of plane fare.
We’ve had 3 huge barrels sitting in our living room for about a month now. One is packed. That was actually the first one one to arrive. Arp has to drive down into Jersey to pick them up. With some maneuvering, we figured out how to get two of them in the car. They are huge. It’s a tight squeeze. I’m not sure if the picture does it justice. The barrels are 3.5 feet tall and have a 2 foot diameter. When J stands inside of it. it completely swallows her up. M’s head just barely peeks out.
In case you were wondering what these barrels are for - we are packing some things up to eventually send down to Costa Rica. We’ve been packing up some of the things we can live without for a few months, especially heavy things! So far, we’ve packed mostly books and toys. One of my next projects will be to pack up a bin that is entirely baby-related stuff. Cloth diapers, baby clothes and toys for the first year. I will also most likely dedicate an entire bin to crafts supplies, art materials, and homeschool necessities (which isn’t much, in our case, but maybe reference books, and things like that). These bins will also eventually hold stereos, a small TV, and electric kitchen gadgets.
I have a feeling that the packing will kick into high gear once we get a contract on the house. But for now, we’re just beginning to understand what is like to pack for an international move. Part of it is really liberating - coming to terms with the fact that we own too much crap that we never use and don’t need. Shedding the weight of useless possessions feels great. But the dark side is that there are plenty of items that I have that I do like owning, but can’t justify the cost of shipping. Each barrel holds a lot, but each will cost somewhere between $250-$300 to ship. So I find myself wrestling with my own wishes a lot. I’ve heard of some people shipping their crap down in huge shipping containers for many many thousands of dollars. I’ve come to terms with the fact that we are not in that demographic. I guess I’m kind of glad about that. I would like to have a lot less clutter in my life, so using just a few (maybe 6 or 8 tops) of these barrels helps.
Think about this yourself - if you could only ship things in, let’s say, 5 barrels, what would you pack and what would you pass on?
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Vagabonding by Rolf Potts is about long-term, unconventional world travel. Conventional would be the notion that long-term travel is possible only by the very wealthy galavanting from exclusive resort to private island in luxury. In reality, long-term travel is very possible for people of more normal means, but to do it in a fulfilling fashion requires a mindset of openness and focus on what’s important. This is also what is essential to a successful life as an expat, and Potts distills it so well that every expat (and expat-to-be) should read this book.
Vagabonding - n. a privately meaningful manner of travel that emphasizes creativity, adventure, simplicity, awareness, discovery, independence, realism, self-reliance, and the growth of the spirit.
This definition, from the book’s opening page, succinctly lists all the qualities that a successful expat needs. Quite a few expats move out of their chosen destination within 2 years. There aren’t any hard numbers, but it is likely in the range of 20-40%. I imagine that a common thread amongst them would be a lack of flexibility and maintaining the same mindset and expectations they had in their home country.
Clocking in at 206 pages, the book is an easy, worthwhile, inspiring read. Interspersed in the chapters are quotes from vagabonders, and each chapter ends with a profile of a path-blazing vagabond. These pioneers include John Muir (founder of the Sierra Club), Thoreau and Walt Whitman. It’s cool to read about them, but of more value are the quotes and comments by the less-reknowned, everyday vagabonds like ourselves.
Also included at the end of each chapter is a list helpful resources (books & websites). A more up-to-date list of resources, vagabonding profiles, forum and Potts’ blog can be found at the companion website, www.vagabonding.net.
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Arp tells me that he’s tired of using his regular razor and paying all this money to buy the refill blades. When they run out, he plans to immediately get a straight razor.
Arp: I’m kicking it old school!
Me: Well, what if you can’t figure out how to use it right?!
Arp: I’m going to figure it out how to use it right or I’m going to die!!!!
Should I be concerned? Maybe I should invest in some new first aid supplies at the same time?
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I’ve been trying to convince my dad to retire. He’s one of those old guys who thinks he just has to work, and the last time I bugged him about it, he insisted that he wouldn’t know what to do with his time. But he could come up with a list of 10 things he would do if he didn’t have to work. That’s what you’ll be doing when you retire, I told him.
Maybe all those years I went to school for 2 months and spent the rest of the time in India made me resistant to having my time monopolized for nothing more than a paycheck. I used to keep track of all the times I’d been fired or quit (ie no notice) with pride - it’s somewhere between 12 and 15. Read more »
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