Commercialism, Big Business, what is the world coming to?

Many of you know that I used to work for The Body Shop. Many of you also know about Dame Anita Roddick, founder or The Body Shop and her life-long focus on activism,natural skin care, environmentalism, fair- trade, recycling, refilling, no animal testing, etc. I loved working for such a family-friendly, personal, small, down-to earth, positive, company that was about things I could get behind.

What you may not know is that Anita passed away fairly recently. A shock to everyone. I hoped that her husband Gordon and daughters Sam and Justine would keep the company going in the direction Anita had always envisioned. Well! Imagine my dismay when I found out that not only is the Roddick family not running The Body Shop, but the company has been bought out by Loreal! A cosmetics company! ARRRRGGHHHHHH......i was speechless. Outraged really. How did this happen? I still cannot believe it. Though I no longer work for the company, I do still use their products: Brazil Nut body butter in the winter on my super sensitive skin, peppermint foot lotion on my tired feet, woody sandalwood oil in place of deoderant, hemp had creme.....I love those products. Needless to say, I will NOT be buying those beloved items from The Body Shop anymore. But most of all, it saddens me to think that all of Ms. Roddick's dedication and hard work has been sold! Gone... I have some books that Anita wrote and in all of them, her determination to stand alone from the cosmetics giants is voiced....her disdain for big business, or business in general....her vision to sell real products, not false promises to people for simply, cleaning, polishing and moisturizing their skin. What is Anita saying right now?

So, if that weren't bad enough, I have also come to find out that AVEDA, a company who I also believed in and who I thought stood for something...environmentalism, natural haircare and cosmetics, etc....has sold out to Estee Lauder! When I lived in St. Louis, I regularly went to an Aveda-concept salon for my haircare needs. Now, you all know that I now have dreadlocks and don't go to the salon, but still! I may not have them forever and I'd like to know that I could still buy shampoo that I believe in....... What is this world coming to?

Okay, so I needed to calm down. I made a cup of tea and while it was steeping, sat reading a magazine at the table. What did I come across? An article on how BURT'S BEES has sold out too! Guess who now owns burts? Clorox! Yeah, for real! A company that's been polluting the environment for years. I love my burt's bees lip balm...in honey, mint, and cranberry! I love my nutmeg lip shimmer, and my vitamin E face oil.....I love the shampoo bar....I could go on and on. I wanted to cry. I may have even shed a tear. "That's it!" I decided. If I can't rest assured knowing that Burt in his old overalls, worn hat and burly beard is not tending his bee hives in Maine to create my favorite lipbalm anymore....then, then, then....I'll make it myself! I'll post pictures when I actually do make a batch...but first, I need to use up all the Burt's in the house. I've decided I'm not even going to try and find a replacement product. I'm suddenly feeling bitter towards all companies. Time to look to local farmer's for beeswax and rely on myself to make my beauty necessities..

The final straw....TOM'S OF MAINE...yes, the toothpaste the children and I use. They've done it too, they've sold out. To whom, you ask? Colgate-Palmolive...I have no words. We may start brushing our teeth with Bronners. Mama Kim does it, her kids have adapted.....that or baking soda.......

What's the deal? Why can't our small, family owned and operated businesses thrive? Did they get money hungry and want some of the fame? Was it too much work? Didn't enough of us naturalists support them? I just don't understand.
I'm off to make another cup of tea, sustainably harvested from a local family and my friends, The Orners out at Quiet Creek Herb Farm and School of COuntry Living....a place I can feel good about.....by the way, I also get my handmade soap from Quiet Creek...and I just spoke with Claire, they have beeswax!

Please share your frustrations, let me know I'm not the only one affected by these things...anyone?

There are only two ways to live your life, only two ways to be.

One is the right way, the other the wrong way.

The right is to give, to share, to love.

The wrong is to snatch, to exploit, to accumulate.

~Osho, No water No mood~

Do Schools Kill Creativity?

So, Many of you already know that I personally think that indeed, schools DO kill creativity....one of my biggest pet peeves is mass produced classroom art projects...you all know what I'm talking about...twenty-five jack-o-lanterns taped up in the hallway....all identical!
But anyway, I came across this very interesting video and thought I can't seem to embed it today...I've included the link below so you can consider your own thoughts on schools and creativity.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY

Smart Shopper!

This post if for all you local folks. I recently got a tip about a store called the Smart Shopper located in Knox, PA. Kind of a drive for me (about an hour+) but so worth the trip. You do have to go aisle by aisle and kind of look through stuff, and watch those expiration dates. But....I got all of this organic food and body care for just $40! Seriously! If I were to buy these same things at a local grocery or natural food store, I'm sure I would've spent well over $100... So, a big old Thank You to Jason for tipping me off! I have directions for anyone who wants them.

Blessings!

Teah really likes to say a prayer at meal times, which is totally fine by me. I think it's so important to develop revererence...(Steiner thinks so too) so...I decided it was time to get back to something that we've kind of gotten away from this year with the decision to go to public school and allowing our lives to get so busy. Verses. Beautiful, meaningful verses. We used to say good morning verses, circle time verses, chore-time verses, handwork verses, bedtime verses, mealtime verses, etc....and I think it's time to bring it all back. Well, some of them anyway. So, we've brought back the morning, after school, bedtime and morning verses...all new and fresh with small drawings to help us remember how they go. So far, so good. Everyone joins hands and smiles as they recite the verses. This one is our mealtime verse and I think everyone feels like the earth and the sun are something we can get behind!
Would anyone like to share their familie's blessings or verses? Anyone?

P.s For those of you who would like to start saying verses with your families, there are many great resources out there. You could google Waldorf Verses or check out the book Seven Times The Sun, which is chock full of 'em!

Delicious Roast Dinner

So, the other night, Andy and I made this delicious dinner of couscous with roasted root veggies (fingerling potatoes, carrots, onions, squash, garlic) from Zeb's certified naturally grown farm. This hearty meal was accompanied by mugs of rich raw milk from a local dairy. We ate by candle-light and really enjoyed it, the beauty of the meal, the texture, the feeling that what we were eating was actually good for us, good for the earth...that it came from good beginnings. I wanted to capture that in these pictures, like so many other mamas do....but, I think I may be photo-deficient or something, because in the picture, it doesn't look nearly as appetizing as it actually was.

My inspiration for healthy food photos came from a mama who blogs here:


http://veganmother.blogspot.com/2008/03/vcon-basil-cilantro-pesto (may have to copy and paste this link...not sure what's up)
Check out her blog, I promise you'll be inspired to eat right, to prepare beautiful delicious meals, to enjoy the experience! Bon apetite'

Stuff...stuff, stuff, stuff, stuff, stuff, stuff...

Okay, folks....this is serious...We all have too much stuff! For Real! It really is just stuff, too. Cheap, plastic crap...tons of clothes we'll never wear...gifts we've been given that just aren't us, but that we keep so as not to offend...we just keep consuming....ARRRGGHHHHH...it's so frustrating.
I'm encouraging all of you to hurry on over to http://www.thestoryofstuff.com and watch the full length movie...Maybe invite some friends over for a viewing and pop popcorn or enjoy a communal meal and then a discussion on what we each can do...

Oh, and while you're all together, discuss freecycle (http://www.freecycle.org) and talk about ways to responsibly reduce the amount of stuff you each have.