This Is Not Utopia

Honey’s work schedule has been weird lately due to his hours being cut until they can find more work for him. Tonight he was asked to work a shift at very short notice, so he’ll be staying up all night without the “luxury” of having his body adjusted to a night schedule. This always concerns me, because it does take a toll on your body to be repeatedly denied sleep. Anyway. This all got me thinking about the way we live our lives in civilized, modern countries. Most people spend long hours doing something for other people so we can be paid enough to feed ourselves and have a place to sleep at night. If other people don’t need things done, we’re stuck as unemployed. We take jobs in desperation that we wouldn’t otherwise choose. What if more people set up as farmers (smallish, sustainable farms) with the intention of growing enough to feed their families and then selling the rest? What if more of us got closer to the land instead of holing up in concrete jungles and sitting in offices every day? I wonder how far the unemployment rate would drop if people moved to self-sustaining jobs? I truly envy those people who have found ways to become totally or mostly self-sufficient through farming, animal husbandry, solar power, and other means. I would much rather see myself, Honey, Buddy, and any future offspring spending our hours creating our own livelihood rather than going off to be cogs in the industrial machine.

When I think of Utopia, I see people choosing to live together as communities. They care about their fellow humans, the critters, and the earth that sustains all of us. They have chosen a life centered on experiences rather than stuff. As an American, I don’t see many people who are willing to choose experiences over stuff. I see a culture fixated on the latest smart phone, the most convenient and tasty way to fill their bellies, and the best paying job so they can buy more stuff (and a big enough house to put said stuff). I also see a lot of people so stuck in the system that they will never realize there is a way out or find an opportunity to get out (that feels like us, sometimes, but we’re on our way). This is not Utopia and it never will be. It is my personal belief that, the farther we get from living off the land, the farther from happiness and viability we will become. You can live in a city and still find ways to “live off the land,” by the way (co-ops, CSA’s, farmer’s markets, etc.). I could ramble on a bit longer about the health benefits of getting your hands and feet into the dirt and interacting with Nature in general, but I think I should go to bed now. Hopefully my scattered thoughts make some sense to you. I have well over 50 followers now – would love if a few (or all) of you gave me some input from time to time.

Nose Ring!

Wednesday I have an appointment to have my nose pierced. I’m super excited! I’ve been wanting to have this done for quite awhile now, but money or my squeamishness has prevented it from happening until now. Perhaps I should rename my blog “Musings of a Funky Hippie-Wanna-Be.” 🙂

We bought some incense Saturday at a coop, and have all been very pleased with its aroma. Incense can be risky, especially for people with allergies and asthma, but this stuff seems high quality enough that it is uplifting rather than stuffy/too strong. It has mad the apartment smell so nice, even when it’s not burning. The smell reminds me of a Whole Foods or coop – natural, earthy, clean.

Speaking of coops, we went to a new one this morning. It was nice and had several things that our local Whole Foods doesn’t offer, so we joined it. Yay! It’s exciting to be part of something like that, something that is part of the community and supports local food and health. Some people oppose the concept of “it takes a village,” but I find a world of truth in it. American society has moved so far away from working together as a local community. We all focus on our own lives, our own families, and live very independent from the people around us. We go to Wal Mart and buy what we need, without any thought about who made the items or where they came from. Buying local is different. You can know you support people living nearby. You are helping to build your local community rather than a giant corporation, where so much of the profit seems to go to the higher ups rather than to the workers.