Simple Living - The Great Food Adventure

About two months ago, Matthew and I started shopping differently. In my post on July 30th, I described the beginning of that change. At that time, I was expecting to do a fairly small fraction of my shopping at the co-op and most of the rest of it at Winco because I didn't think we could afford to buy much of the more expensive, organic goods. However, that's not how it turned out at all! I'd like to share my findings before school starts and things get crazy, so here we go!

First of all, in full disclosure, the budget that Matthew and I set was $300 a month for groceries including household items like dish soap, toothpaste, and the like. In August we easily met this budget (well, we spent less than $225 since we were at camp for the first week of the month). It is also looking like we are going to succeed again in September. Here's what we have been getting for our money...

At the co-op we buy all of our produce except when organic produce goes on sale at Fred Meyer. What we buy is organic, and a lot of it comes from the six counties surrounding and including our own. We also buy a lot of (mostly organic) bulk items including flour, oats, pasta, rice and beans. We buy cage-free eggs and milk from a local dairy farm. We find that we rarely need to buy packaged goods like canned food, but when we do, it is done at the co-op.

At Winco we mostly buy things that are carried at the co-op but are cheaper at Winco. For example, we get Nancy's yogurt and Tillamook cheeses. We also still buy cereal here because we buy big bags cheap, and the co-op unfortunately does not have this type of thing available. Besides an occasional item that the co-op does not carry, this is pretty much all we get here.

If you think that $300 is still a lot of money for food, realize that we only spend about $5 a day per person for all of our meals and snacks. For the quality, reduced exposure to dangerous chemicals, support for the local farmers, good treatment of the livestock that produce the food, support for environmentally friendly practices, and support for fair wages for anyone involved in the process of making products... I think that $5 is pretty amazing.

As a note, one big reason that we can afford to do this is that we cook much of our food from scratch. We generally make two different meals each week, and we eat a lot of leftovers. I also make home-baked breads, and we bake muffins or something else for snacks. However, I did this all before switching to the co-op... Even during the school year when spending 60-80 hours a week working. Admittedly, I do like cooking...

A second reason that we can afford to do this is that we have started to eat less meat. Currently, also at the co-op, we have decided to buy a small amount of lunch meat and 1 to 1.5 pounds of chicken each month. I have successfully used tofu as a substitute a few times, and I also have found a bunch of good vegetarian recipes.

I don't know if more than two or three people read this, but I wanted to share my experiences because I feel like a lot of people would love to eat healthier, organic, local foods but don't think that they can afford it. I encourage you to try it out if you have ever wanted to. I'd be more than happy to share recipes, advice, or any other information that may be helpful.

Thanks for reading!

Just ideas to think about...

I decided to write a bit about the popular question, "Who gets to go to heaven?"

First of all, I do believe that through Jesus' doing, we are all able to have a loving relationship with God here on earth and after physical death. From my understanding, we can be confident in our good standing if we sincerely seek to patch our relationship with God through a faith in Jesus' life, death and resurrection.

That's all well and good, but what about everyone who doesn't have this type of relationship? I think that many Christians are convinced that everyone else goes to hell. I have heard many people talk about individuals and nations that they are convinced are in or are going to hell. I recently have heard an adult tell a group of children about someone that she "knows" is now in hell. Wow!

People seem so quick and willing to condemn billions to hell with a black-and-white standards. The following are a few things that seem like possible and, perhaps, reasonable alternatives.

1) God works differently with different people. Think back to the days of the Old Testament. God worked closely with the Israelites, and we have a record of His actions with Israel. We can also read that outsiders were welcomed to follow the God of Israel. However, what about people who never encountered Israel? Did they never get to meet God? Are they then condemned to hell? I think that God works with all people, both in the past and present, and He is able to judge them accordingly.

2) Even people presented with the story of Jesus who then reject it might not have rejected God. Wait... What??? Did I just say that? Yes. Yes, I did. I have a good reason, though! Perhaps the way God was presented was not an accurate representation of God, and perhaps this false, albeit perhaps unintentionally false, representation is what people are rejecting. This is an extreme illustration, but imagine going into an innocent, peaceful village and killing half of them at random. You then go to the remaining half and give a spiel about God's love. If they reject your spiel, they are probably not rejecting God. They are rejecting you.

I am not saying that I know how God judges people because I don't. However, I do believe that he is good, loving, just, and all-knowing. Since I am not these things, I am going to accept that I can't judge a person. Instead, I am going to spend my time trying to love people with God's love so that hopefully they can love God back.

The Future

Since in a few weeks I will begin the last year of school (!!!!!!), it seems fitting to write a post about our future. Of course, I don't really know what will happen in the future, but I think that it is alright to dream. We do a lot of dreaming...

Short term:

We're hoping that Matthew will find a job first, and then I can apply for a number of jobs wherever he finds work. With the sluggish economy, he may have to take whatever job he gets for now. Currently, I think I'd really like teaching at a community college or perhaps a university. If I can't find work there, I might do private tutoring or perhaps apply for subbing jobs in the public schools for a start. We'd like to stay in the valley in Oregon, but we'll see what we can do.

Long term:

Currently, we'd like to come back to Corvallis (though perhaps avoid the college area!). We love the community, our church, and the proximity to family and friends. However, Corvallis currently has few companies of interest for Matthew. If not Corvallis, then we would like to aim for Eugene/Springfield.

Matthew is really interested in the fields of sustainable energy, alternative transportation, or green buildings (for example, making buildings meeting LEED's standards). I personally am excited about the areas he wants to work in, and I hope that this can happen. I have the feeling that I'll spend a lot of my life doing different types of teaching, however at some point in the future, we'd like to have kids. I had a stay-at-home mom, and I want to provide the same strong support-system to my kids if at all possible. I think that being a mom will be a challenging, significant, and rewarding job for the years I have it. Fortunately, education jobs can be somewhat flexible, so I might be able to do some teaching when the kids reach school years.

Another big dream of ours is to build a house. Matthew has all sorts of ideas to make it a net-zero energy home. We want to build with sustainable, chemical-free materials to create a healthy, happy space. (Fun fact: I really want to have my kitchen painted a deep purple! Since I want to spend a fair amount of time cooking good, wholesome food for my family, it'd be nice to have such a welcoming color around me.) Along with this home, I really want to grow a lot of our produce from a garden in our yard. It would be hard work, but I think I'd enjoy it. I also want to plant a flower garden with the goal of planting a lot of native plants so that we don't have to use much water. We want two cats, and I'd like to have a few laying hens pecking their way around the backyard.

It will always be important for us to be involved with people. We'd love to have a church like we have now. We love being with a small community of people involved in the community and each other's lives. Also, I want to have the type of home where my kids' friends feel welcome and loved. I have also considered taking in foster kids since I feel like it would be wonderful to spill love, blessings, hope, and good on people who might not have gotten it in their own homes. We'll see...

In general, I think that we are going to feel rich by wanting little and giving and loving much. I experience joy now with my basil garden, cooking good food, line-drying laundry (among other energy saving things), and many other activities. It just seems like this could multiply with a full garden, having more time to cook, having a house designed to be healthy, etc. Regardless, by finding joy in love and living simply, I think that we will be happy whether or not all of our dreams come true.

A Simple Life - A Rich Summer

This post is, in part, a continuation of my thoughts in the post "A Simple Life" from January. Feel free to read that first if you wish!

In continuing to try to live simply for the last half of the year, here is what has happened:

1) Once I told myself that I should stop wanting more things, it actually became fairly simple to stop buying them! Besides groceries and household goods, I honestly haven't bought much in the past 6-months. My one shopping trip was to Goodwill where I handed in some clothes and bought some new-to-me clothing. Buying used is terrific because it does not create new production and it helps less to go to the landfill. Looking back, I can honestly say that it feels a lot nicer to not constantly feel in want of more things.

2) Once I stopped thinking about my obsession with buying things, I started spending more time thinking about other things to do to live simply and sustainably. Over this summer, Matthew and I have been line drying our clothing and biking just about anytime we go anywhere locally. (This is a lot of biking!) We continue to wash ziploc bags, carry our own cloth grocery bags, and reuse the plastic bags used for produce and bulk goods. If we had access to a compost pile, our garbage bag would be pretty empty. :)

3) This summer I did some research about our world of consumerism, and it made my heart break. The amount done to harm our planet is absurd. Even worse, our market is set up to harm people around the world while keeping our prices "affordable." I felt that I could not go on with good conscience knowing that my purchases were harming people and other living things across the world. A discussion about this and my current solution will be the remainder of this post.

First of all, I have heard, and used, the “lack of money” excuse for careless consumer habits. This can be a viable excuse, and I consciously try to avoid judging others about this. However, I think that we should all individually consider why we don’t have the money. Is it because we value having the latest technology over social justice? Is it because we value entertaining ourselves over the environment? The list goes on. I’m not saying that all things fun or “extraneous” should be avoided, but I am saying that we should really think about what we are doing.

Matthew and I sat down and considered our income and we increased our budget for food and household goods. What are we doing with the extra money? We are going to the local co-op! It is a great place because they do a lot of research for you. Their goal is to sell products that are grown or produced in a manner that is safe and fair for people and the environment. They also try to sell products as locally as possible.

When I shop now, I feel good about what I am buying. I’m avoiding chemical run-off into the sea. I am not causing a farmer’s family to barely get by. My eggs don’t come from a chicken in an itty bitty cage. It’s pretty awesome, and I look forward to improving in this area as time goes on.

A link to the co-op that Matthew and I now own share in: http://www.firstalt.coop/

A link to the site I went to that had information about the ins and outs of our everyday stores and products: http://www.greenamericatoday.org/programs/responsibleshopper/index.cfm

A link to those interested in living simply as a way to live for God: http://www.christiansimpleliving.org/

Thoughts/questions about government

I have wondered for awhile about what I see to be contradictory behavior. I think that it is common for the same people who have strong opinions about the government regulating moral issues (gay marriage, abortion, etc) with the goal of protecting the people to also have the view that our government should not be as involved in providing social programs or creating regulations that help our poorest citizens.

I am struggling to think of justification for this, and I would like to understand if anybody knows some reasonable explanation for why this happens. The closest I've heard to an explanation is that individuals should take care of people around them. I agree that they should, but why shouldn't the government also help? Especially since individuals don't seem to be sufficiently helping all our poor...

If you have respectful thoughts and ideas, I would love to hear them!

Greed -- The Aftermath

I'm posting this because I just don't think people, including myself, are talking about it enough. In particular, I am thinking about the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. As much as we blame BP, and they should be held accountable, we need to realize that we are all responsible for the uncontrollable black sludge in the sea. We hold part of the blame for the marring of the beautiful earth on which we live and the harm of the wildlife we should be protecting.

Why should we bear some of the blame? We are turning into a self-indulgent, greedy, inconsiderate nation of people. We ignore excessive lifestyles through denial; we hate the inconvenience of the possibility that we are destroying something precious. We stand by and let greedy corporations buy our government; we ignore that it is happening.

When is the last time any of us has truly appreciated the sacrifice of the people, animal, and the planet for our lifestyle? Would we continue to live this way if we realized all the harm we cause? What if we each knew how many species we individually have destroyed? What if we knew how many people we have harmed or killed because of the unfair sweatshop conditions?

What if we understood how much better it could be than this?

God made the earth; He made it good. He has given us the great task of taking care of our home while enjoying the great things and pleasures it offers. How are we doing? Do we really think about it and care?

For a visual understanding of what the current oil spill is doing, visit this site:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/03/gulf-oil-spill-photos-ani_n_560813.html#s104977

The Bible

A topic worth considering, I think. This post is related to the very first blog post I wrote, but I will try to be more focused, and I will bring up new details.

Growing up in conservative churches, the first words that come to mind when I hear "The Bible" is "Word of God." The question is, what does that even mean and how does that affect how we approach this text? I think that a popular belief these days is to accept the Bible as infallible, 100% accurate, to be taken completely literally, and to be the ultimate authority to help make decisions and form beliefs. I think that this belief is encouraged with good intentions; I think a huge reason that this has become popular is to perhaps to prevent people from making up convenient ideas to live by instead of pressing on to live a fulfilling life of sacrifice and love.

That being said, I would like to argue against much of this popular belief. But don't despair! I too believe that there is something perfect, infallible, and very capable of helping people be the best people they can be. Stay tuned in.

Part of the understanding of the Bible that I think many people ignore is the style, purpose, and author's intention within each individual book. I am no expert in this area either, but I will try to explain what I mean to the best of my understanding. For example, Psalms is a book of poetry or songs, and many of the psalms express intense emotion. In particular, King David writes songs in prayer to God about his enemies. He spews anger and hatred at them and wishes for their destruction. Since these passages show up, does this mean that this is an appropriate response to any enemies we may have? I don't think so. However, I think that from these passages we can learn that God listens to us even when our humanity drowns out the big picture. We know God loved David; He'll love us too.

Next up, the little contradictions and errors found in the Bible. There are some. How exactly did Saul die? If the Bible is 100% accurate, why do Matthew, Mark, Luke and John contain differences in the story of Jesus' death and resurrection? My answer: I don't think that the Bible is 100% accurate. I think that the people writing it explain things that happened based on what they knew and heard, especially the books devoted especially to recording history. I think that it is futile to try to argue that there is nothing inaccurate or false in the Bible; it will be more productive and truthful to accept the book for what it is and go from there. After all, aren't we seeking the truth?

My next topic is the common belief that there is only one correct way to interpret the Bible, and the fact that many people get upset if you disagree with their interpretation. All I have to say about this is that how we read and perceive any text depends on our culture, upbringing, and understanding of the text. Most of us probably know people who love God and are genuinely doing their best to find truth who still differ in their understanding of the Bible. This fact lets us know that we can't assume that we ever hold the whole truth or even most of it. We have to be alright with that.

I want to conclude with a brief description on how I currently approach the Bible. I believe that God did have a say in what ended up in the book. I think He knew the significance it would have for generations of people, and I think He was intentional about what He allowed in and kept out. With this, I can approach the book with curiosity, and I can search for understanding of God, humanity, myself, and many other things. I use it to be inspired to love and do good. I read it and am reminded of God's love of people. I am challenged to learn and seek truth.

And what do I think is perfect, infallible, and very capable of helping people be the best people they can be? God. The Bible is a good tool, but it cannot and should not take the place of God.