Rubbish

So... Lets talk about sustainability.

It's a word that gets thrown around a lot. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. I'm sure most of you are rolling your eyes already! But we all know it's a fair point.  Does anyone really make changes in their own life to do anything about it?  We all know that we consume way too much, chuck out way to much, and generally don't think about what happens next.

One of the reasons I've been thinking about this is that a council near me is changing the way their bin system works.  They will be picking up the landfill, recycling, and green waste bins fortnightly, rather than weekly.  As you can imagine, there are a lot of people asking themselves how they are going to deal with this enforced change. Can they live with throwing away less rubbish or unwanted items? How can they, as a household, change their style of living to accommodate this situation.

Some people assume that public dumping will become a problem. Others think people will try to put rubbish in commercial dumpsters, such as the local supermarket.  I heard one person say that the bins are too small, and that if they are not emptied weekly, they will need bigger bins!

I think, as a society, we need to change the way we see rubbish.  Instead of automatically throwing something away, can we ask ourselves, "What could be another use for this item?"  Can we cheat the system in a way and buy things that come with less or no packaging? Then that packaging wont end up in our bins!

I don't have the big answers. I don't know what we can do with every single piece of plastic that gets thrown away. But I do know this ~ if each of us try to re-think our own choices, the problem would become smaller.

I thought it would be fun to share with you what I did today! I know it's only a simple thing, but I thought it was kind of inventive in a way...

I drank my coconut water, made pudding with the coconut meat, and turned the coconut into a pot plant!  I can use the mint that is growing in it for cooking, instead of buying mint packaged from the supermarket!

Fresh Coconut Water

Coconut Pudding
(Saved for my toddler)

Mint Planted in a Young Coconut

I know the young coconut will decay eventually, but isn't that the whole point?


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Thanks for reading!

Specifically About Spring...

I love spring...

I took my daughter out for a walk and photo hunt this morning at the nature reserve near our home.
Check out some of the photo's we found!  Although some people do feed these ducks bread, we know it's not healthy for them, so we like watch them swimming around and playing in the wetlands.

I know these pics are far from perfect, but we had fun in the sun, wind, and nature anyway!

Take care!

Specifically about Dads

Dads. When did being a good dad become acting like a mum? Think about that for a minute. 

There was a movie recently that referred to the Father as a “Farmy”! Really? Father crossed with taking care of his kids is called a Farmy? Father who acts like a Mommy? How did this happen? A dad should not have to feel weird about acting like a dad.

Mr Mum.  Where did this come from? A dad who takes care of his child, is a dad, not a male mother. Yeah, yeah, we hear it all the time. 'A mum has breast milk and gave birth, so she should be the primary care-giver and stay with the child and take care of them untill they are school age, and then she might think about going ‘back to work, part-time’'.  Such a common misconception. But, last time I checked, breastfeeding is generally accepted in Western cultures until the child is 1 years old, and then maybe a night time ‘feed’ until they are 18months or so.  That time frame may differ between household, but it is rare you see a 4-5 year old breastfeeding anymore. So why is it up to Mother to be the main care-giver? Anyway, I digress. 

There is no reason a dad should be made to feel embarrassed or awkward caring for his child.  No one would point out a mother pushing a pram and say, ‘Oh how nice of you to get the baby out of the house for a while – lovely to see a mum with her baby, giving Dad a break. Aww blessss…’

When you do see a Dad with his kids, how easy is it to assume he is following orders from a strung out mum who is at her wits end with kids and their behavior whilst being swamped with chores and needs him to ‘GET THEM OUT!’

There is no reason a Dad can’t think to himself that, god forbid, he might actually want to spend time with his kids! And yet, at the park, he feels the watchful eye of the ‘mummy pack’ as he takes a picture of his kids playing nicely together (for a change!).  They are making memories together.  He is about to message this photo to his wife, but he’s asked what the hell he thinks he’s doing using photography in a public place (who knows what he’ll do with it, right?!). Meanwhile, the next mum is uploading 17 photos to Facebook!

When a dad is made to feel like this, it’s taking away from his role, responsibility, and love for his child/children. We are being told everywhere that ‘kids need a Father Figure’ in their lives.  The harsh reality is that many children grow up without a father.  This is why society is always saying they ‘need male primary school teachers’.  This is why there are big brother/little brother programs. This is one reason people send their kids to Scouts, or join them up to sporting clubs etc. When kids grow up unbalance adults, society is quick to blame it on them not have a reliable ‘Father Figure’ to depend on or lead them by example.

You can’t have it both ways. 

If a kid is lucky enough to have a dad around, let’s encourage that family when we see them out. Let’s call him ‘Dad’, because that’s what he is.  Let’s not call him ‘Mr Mum’ for changing that nappy, or ‘Farmy’ because he took his kid to play group. Let dads be dads.

Specifically About Travel

I have been thinking a lot about travel lately: where I have lived, where I have visited, where I would one day like to go.

Thinking about the time I lived interstate, and attempted my first degree (that’s another story). The time I went to Scotland, to Wales, when I lived in England, the time I visited Amsterdam, or my time in France.  Sure, I’ve been to a lot of places, but I haven’t been to anywhere near the amount of places I would like to go one day.

I know it is definitely cliché, but to me, travel isn’t about the destination, it’s about how you get there and what you do once you are there. 

Travel is about the people you meet along the way. In Spain, I met a girl from Malaysia, Liyana.  We visited so many different districts and sites together.  We still keep in touch.  Also, while I was in Spain, I met another girl, Marily.  She ended up visiting me in Adelaide and we have become friends, even though she is from Quebec, Canada! When I lived in Prague, Czech Republic, I made friends with so many people from all around the world, and we have stayed in contact.

Travel brings people closer together.  Travel humanizes countries. Where ever I have been, I have always met someone I can now call a friend.

 Travel is not only about the experiences you have with those new people, but also the experiences you have by yourself. I spent the day exploring the canals in Amsterdam, walking in the footsteps of many other souls and meditating on the city I was currently in.  The art, the history, the lives lived, and yet to be lived.

Travel, to me, is about discovering and re-discovering aspects about my life which I didn’t know were there, or haven’t seen in a while.  Travel is very freeing and it opens your mind to new ideas, and ways of doing things, not only going to new places you have never been before.  Waking up in the morning wondering what the day will bring. Planning your day, with the freedom to change those plans.  Being independent, but sensitive to what is happening around you, and maybe crossing paths with others on a similar journey.

Travel teaches you to be patient. I remember being stuck on a train between Amsterdam and Prague.  It was meant to be an overnight train, boarding at 7PM, and arriving at 7AM.  Instead I ended up stuck on the train in the middle of the night, alone with strangers, somewhere in Germany for 4 hours and ended up getting to Prague at 12 noon the next day.  I’m still not entirely sure what had happened, but it makes you realize that, even if you will never understand, some things happen that are out of your control and you have to roll with it and make the best of the situation.

Although I have put big travel plans on hold in this current season of life, I’m realising the joy and beauty of the place I am living in right now.  Travel has taught me to appreciate time, to be observant, and to make the most of experiences because you may will never get that same experience again.

Take notice of days going by. Enjoy that afternoon spent at the beach, or the time you got to spend doing something you love, with someone you love.

Right now, I’m traveling with my family, in my suburban home, helping my baby to grow and experience the world around us. Seeing her mature and change is all the awe and wonderment I need.

I’m not going to sit here and only dream about my next big adventure. Life is about finding adventure in the little things, as well as the earth shattering moments.  And believe me, I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.