How do "I"="you"="we" exist?

[Zweistein]

Don’t “we” have to make a lot of decisions during "our" lifetime?
How conscious are “your” choices?
Do “you” take the "right" or the "left" way?
Do “you” think one person can’t change anything or
are “you” truly embodying Mahatma Gandhi’s “Be the change you want to see in this world”?

Sure all those "ways" end in nothingness, so it's all about the journey itself, isn't it?

Edited October 17, 2018 by Zweistein

[Zweistein]

Chapter #1: Going humble with "our" toothbrushes!

 

One of "my” first changes was the toothbrushes of "our" family. "I" decided to support this company: https://thehumble.co/ instead of those who mass-produce plastic ones. Sure, the bristles are still nylon which is usually not recycled well enough yet (https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2016/may/18/recycling-nylon-bureo-patagonia-sustainable-clothing). But hey, the “zero waste” movement doesn’t imply that “we” shouldn’t produce any waste at all – instead it’s all about making conscious choices (because with the way “we” are spending “our” money “we” actually have a significant vote!) and this movement is actually all about letting big businesses (which don’t care about their environmental impact) know that “we” are not ok with what “they” do!

So, below feel free to provide links to other responsible companies producing better toothbrushes – “I” can’t know all of them, but with “your” help, “we” can turn this journal into a wonderful resource for people who want to become greener!

After being on this journey for a while, there is no way for "me" to turn back. "I" would rather go an extra mile to buy products from responsible sources!

How about "you"?
Do "you" still have a good conscience when "you" are brushing your teeth with a plastic toothbrush?

 

Whatever "your" answer is - may “you” find peace and be happy!

 

Sincerely “yours“,

"Zwei ist ein" aka Zweistein ?

Edited October 17, 2018 by Zweistein

[Zweistein]

If anyone wants to learn more about Bamboo, here "you" go:

 

 

The International Bamboo and Rattan Organisation (INBAR), an independent intergovernmental organization with currently 44 member states (https://www.inbar.int/about-inbar/#1, https://www.youtube.com/user/INBARChannel) has six sustainable development goals:

1. End poverty in all its forms

2. Provide affordable, sustainable and reliable modern energy services for all

3. Access to adequate and affordable housing

4. Efficient use of natural resources

5. Address climate change

6. Protect and restore terrestrial ecosystems.

 

(Yes, ok - Bamboo fabric is problematic: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2008/aug/13/bamboo.fabric but other than that there are not so many bad things to say about Bamboo.)

Of course, "you" are welcome to join the discussion :-)

P.S. I just asked https://thehumble.co/ if they could start to sell their toothbrushes in bulk.
Let's see what they say... ;-)

 

[Zweistein]

Chapter 2: Where and how to buy greener products?

Here are two webpages that might help “you” finding stores and farmers markets close to where “you” live. In Europe: https://zerowastemap.org/

and in the US: https://app.zerowastehome.com/. The latter is Bea Johnson’s webpage, who is considered the founder of the Zero waste lifestyle movement. She has 300K followers on social media and her book (https://www.amazon.com/Zero-Waste-Home-Ultimate-Simplifying/dp/1451697686/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1540377100&sr=8-1) has been translated into more than 20 languages.

Here is one of her Ted-Talks:

 

But this is not just a women’s green lifestyle movement:

 

Here is another good book by Leo Hickman which inspired “me” deeply: https://www.amazon.com/Life-Stripped-Bare-Trying-Ethically/dp/1903919614/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1540375646&sr=8-7&keywords=Leo+Hickman

Last but not least, consider joining a local zerowaste group on Facebook! “They” usually have the best insider information and “you” won’t feel so alone.

Edited October 24, 2018 by Zweistein

[Zweistein]

"I" just wanted to add a few more words about Bea Johnson... (and then I will be done praising her, I promise). Here is her "the 5 Rs" scheme:

... so, it's a mixture of minimalism (or, actually, I like the term "Swedish death cleaning" a bit more ) and zero-waste lifestyle, while failing to address stage green issues like the meat industry and CO2 footprints. But to balance it out, she is doing the honorable work of talking to important players:

Edited October 29, 2018 by Zweistein

[Zweistein]

So, how far have we come?

The garbage truck picks up our trash every two weeks. Now, we are down to one loosely-filled 35 liter bag of “left-over” trash. At the beginning of this year, our trash container (190 liters) was 3-4 times this full.

 

How a family of 4 can fit their trash of 1 year into a 1 liter jar is still a puzzle to me. But I’m determined to find out if it’s feasible at all. I give us another year and I will post our progress here every 3 months (31. January, 30. April, 31. July, & 31. October 2019). I will also try to document if and by how much we can reduce our recycling. [Sweden seems very proud about their recycling strategies and that “we” are even importing trash (https://sweden.se/nature/the-swedish-recycling-revolution/), but I’m actually not so happy about the fact that so much gets burned.]

Once the gardening season starts again in the spring, I want to see if I can speed up our outdoor compost with Bokashi (mix of microorganisms) or various species of worms. At the moment, we still have a trash container for food waste that is picked up every two weeks as well.

Ok, I’m done talking about trash for now, lol.

In the next chapters, I will discuss the pro’s and con’s of going vegan, the issues with plastic and CO2 footprints.

Edited October 31, 2018 by Zweistein

[Zweistein]

It was time for a bit more contemplation about what reality is and how societies works

… coming to the conclusion that any ideology, any business, any religion or cult, any political movements and yes, even “green” movements, the self-help industry, even concepts like spiral dynamics – all of it is STILL (and probably always will be) about NUMBING THE FEAR OF DYING, trying to sell "you=me=us" a greater and better life. Sure, it's on different levels of consciousness of course, but the reason why this works is still the same, isn't it? What else makes "our" egos feel better than the emotion of feeling better than "everyone else"? Isn't the illusion of love and compassion boiling down to the exact same thing?

[Zweistein]

Chapter 3: The pros and cons of becoming vegan

I have decided to try out how it feels to eat a vegan diet but at the same time, I want to keep contemplating and researching and brainstorming. Your input is (of course) welcome.

I became vegetarian 9 years ago because I was fed up with the meat industry and how animals are being treated. I read and I’m currently re-reading Michael Pollan’s “The omnivore’s dilemma” (it’s a great book!) and I used to agree with him on this point: “What’s wrong with eating animals is the practice, not the principle.” Pollan also wrote: “Sometimes I think that all it would take to clarify our feelings about eating meat, and in the process begin to redeem animal agriculture, would be to simply pass a law requiring all the sheet-metal walls of all the CAFOs [Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation], and even the concrete walls of slaughterhouses, to be replaced with glass. If there’s any new right we need to establish, maybe this is the one: the right, I mean, to look.”

And seriously - for me, all it took to become vegetarian was watching this video by Paul McCartney:

and since then I (still) feel like I need to throw up whenever I walk by the meat section in a grocery store. I start to feel sick just thinking about it now.

Michael Pollan also writes about the Vegan utopia and I get his arguments, but when I contemplate questions like:

• What does a cow feel when her calve is taken away?
• Is it appropriate for humans to drink cow milk?
• What does a hen feel when her eggs are taken away?
• Could I actually kill a larger animal in order to eat it?
• I have killed a fish before – could I still do that? How would it feel now?

… I feel more and more drawn to become vegan. For anyone, who wants to contemplate along – here are two good resources:

 

and https://www.vegansociety.com/. 

On the other hand, when I take a closer look at typical vegan products, I get really upset about their long list of ingredients and then we are back to the issue of processed food. I also don’t want to buy too many soy products because of the high isoflavone/estrogen levels (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isoflavone, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phytoestrogen).

Another issue is vitamin B12. I don’t want to take supplements, so what could I do?
I have been mixing Spirulina powder into my smoothies, but now I found out that probably only natural Chlorella has a positive effect: https://www.b12-vitamin.com/algae/

I guess, I will have to get my B12 values checked once I have transformed my diet completely to vegan (my goal is by the end of this year - until then, I'm slowly implementing the switches).

 

[Zweistein]

 

Edited November 19, 2018 by Zweistein
make sure to turn on the english subtitles

[Zweistein]

I know nothing. Too bad, that "I"="you"="we" are only human. Or what are "we"?

Maybe the upcoming retreat will help. Saying good bye for 2-3 weeks ?

[now is forever]

@Zweistein „kin“ sweety, have fun, regather your spirits ?

Edited November 21, 2018 by now is forever

[Zweistein]

@now is forever ? hope you are doing well! 

[now is forever]

yes  welcome back. how was your retreat?

[Zweistein]

I guess I was suffering from ego-backlash even before going into it ?? So, guess how I feel now? 

No, actually, it's not that bad (yet). I'm embracing the fact that in the next couple of weeks I will get to make some use of all the insights I had. I always feel like I learn the most when I spend time together with people that have the ability to stir up my emotions ?

 

[Zweistein]

And yeah, all questions are only answered temporarly anyway... so there is actually not much else to say. Maybe the strong feeling that I should shut up here as I'm probably causing more harm than good with my green moralism ?

[now is forever]

@Zweistein i would not care about the green moralism... i also always think i might be thrown out soon for being extra dreist. but it never happens. it‘s just the inability to evaluate oneself appearance - i like you here, so for me no harm done.

the stirring of the emotion is important isn’t it? it can only be stirred by someone who knows to stirr or stirrs unintentionally and of course you can only watch them in movement.

we didn’t talk about bending spoons did we? we are talking about stirring the spoon.  (sorry again all these metaphors)

[tsuki]

I really want to chime in, but I have nothing to say. Just saying hi to old friends .

6 hours ago, now is forever said:

(sorry again all these metaphors)

Just look what happened to her while you were gone @Zweistein!
She sounds so level-headed now.

[Zweistein]

@tsuki  Hi Tsuki, dear old friend! 

I love her metaphors ?

So, no bending spoons. And no victim behavior either, lol ?

[Zweistein]

On 17.10.2018 at 1:46 PM, Zweistein said:

"I" challenge "you" to join "me" while "I’m" intensifying "my" journey towards zero waste and greener living (of course while "we" are continuing the inner work as well).

 

Oh jeeze, this was so not coming from a place of abundance at the time I wrote this. Nowadays, I actually really don't care what you do. Go and produce as much waste as you want! And live a life as "un-green" as you want! I also understand that this journal is a "first world problems" type of journal and that I can consider myself lucky to live in a stage green/yellow country. 

I will still keep going and write this journal as I work on myself and implement changes that I want to do for myself. 
And during my retreat I had the insight that I should probably apply more effective altruistic principles actually. 

 

 

 

Edited December 17, 2018 by Zweistein

[Zweistein]

Chapter 4: CO2 footprints

CO2 footprints are highest during a year at Christmas time. Not just because of all the gifts, but also because of the decorative lights. 
Researchers calculated that three days of Christmas festivities result in average to ~650 kg of CO2 emissions per person
- equivalent to the weight of 1,000 Christmas puddings: 
https://www.york.ac.uk/news-and-events/news/2007/carbon-christmas/

Our presents this year are mainly Bamboo toothbrushes, soap bars that a friend of mine makes herself and nets that I crocheted myself (to use for buying fruits and veggies). They will be wrapped in either cloth (Japanese Furoshiki style): http://thezerowastejapan.com/how-to-wrap-a-gift-with-furoshiki/ or with (already used) wrapping paper that I saved over the last couple of years.

We never had so many lights on and in our house, but still - this year we are reducing even that. I also think it's much cozier with less lights than with way too many.

Edited December 17, 2018 by Zweistein