#i should get money so i can buy a self-sustaining house in the woods and live as a hermit who hoards things and never leaves ever | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

weaselle · 5 years

Text

I got asked in my DMs to elaborate on my master project, so, just know if you click the read more, it’s gonna be like, a LONG ass read

(in b4: when I say things like “the poor” rest assured I am also “the poor” and not trying to feed into classist designations - I just need to be able to talk about different economic demographics. Also, I’ve pulled together several pieces of writing that cover this very involved endeavor for this ask, so there may occasionally be a slight overlap of information, tho I have tried to clean it up)

@victorylilygreen (lol, you asked) @ekinsellaauthor (idk I thought you might be interested)

______________________________________________________________________

I have a plan to provide solutions to the socio-economic crisis facing this country. As I put this together over a couple of decades, it was important for me to not be telling people how they have to live, but rather provide them the tools they need to decide for themselves how to live. This plan then, is more like a mutable format, the first iteration of which provides the example and proof of concept. Then, when people see a successful solution available, they will be sure to copy it -- because this piece of social engineering is meant to be self replicating this way, I often refer to it as a socio-economic worm First, a breakdown of how I arrived at my plan:

The fundamental questions at the base of my attempts at large scale socio-economic fixes are:

1- Since every current system in our society is dysfunctional or corrupt, how can a single simple solution address the entire tangled web of institutions that effect every part of our human lives -- from agriculture, to rent, to wages, to government, to education, to the textile and clothing industry -- it's all problematic and needs to change.

2 - Since we can assume the wealthy will never help change the status quo, how can we get the middle class to pay the poor to create alternatives to current corrupt systems? in other words, how can we free time and money in the economy such that doctors and lawyers and computer techs can pay cashiers and gardeners and cooks to create banks and homes and grocery stores so we can bankrupt Wells Fargo and Century Real Estate and Whole Foods?

And the first answer is, we can create a simple solution that addresses all of it by bringing all that under one roof, for one small group of people, and addressing that microcosm in a way that is replicable by other small groups, as well as able to be scaled up such that it is applicable to the larger society.

To answer the second question, we have to create a situation where the poor are making more money than they currently do. And they need to do this by providing more of what the middle class need (for less money than the middle class currently spends on it) This will provide some immediate relief for the poor while freeing up money in the middle class to fund the larger solutions.

==========================================================

Since we can't create money from nothing, one way to accomplish that is: instead of the poor making more money, the base concept of socio-economic organization of individuals has to change such that it lowers the cost of living for the poor. Lowering the cost of living accomplishes many of the same things as increasing wages. And we have to do that while engaging in providing more of what the middle class needs for less money that they currently pay.

Therefore, we need to identify what the middle class needs. A fundamental problem facing the middle class is that raising a family and running a household and earning enough money to pay for it all is a full time job for three to five adults, and they are trying to do it with two. Which is a major problem for the poor also. What the middle class is trying to do about it is what the poor cannot: buy themselves more time, literally. They pay someone to clean their house, they pay someone to watch their kids, they pay someone to maintain their garden, they pay for food that requires less and less time to prepare or they order to go food. They pay a dry cleaner or laundry service to wash their clothes. If they can afford enough of these things, they wind up with as much left to do as 2 people have time for.

The important thing to realize here is that these chores are the genesis of the necessary institutions that have become corrupt or dysfunctional. Everything a household or family needs is a microcosm of the larger industries and institutions. For example, paying someone to take care of your children is the seed of a school. Paying someone to prepare your meal is the seed of food industry - if you pay them enough to prepare you enough food, it becomes more cost effective to start producing the ingredients or getting them directly from the source. Paying an accountant to do your taxes or getting help with budgeting etc, grows into a bank. Paying someone to wash your clothes is the seed of the clothing industry - soon they can offer repairs, replacing buttons, fixing burst seams, from there alterations and tailoring follow... This is how the poor will be paid to grow new institutions to replace current problematic systems.

SO. Low-income workers need to organize into cooperative communities that leverage group dynamics to lower costs. If four families live together, they don't need to buy four toolbox sets, they can buy one and share. 10 families worth of food bought in bulk costs much less than 10 individual families buying food at the grocery store. Heating a single large building and splitting the bill is much more cost-effective than paying to heat individual housing units. And when one such group is shown to provide solutions and success, other groups will inevitably come together and copy it on their own, unprompted.

AND once they are organized this way, they should offer those services the middle class are trying to use as stop gaps - the chores the middle class are buying themselves out of. The best way to do this is buy creating the solutions to the chore/time crunch for their own community, and then selling those solutions to the middle class. In other words, someone needs to do the house cleaning, the laundry, the cooking, the gardening etc for the building they all live in, and then they can go on to sell that service to middle class households.

They need to do this for less money than the sum of those things currently costs, which can be accomplished via two techniques. The first is simply by bringing all those services under one roof. When the gardener and the housecleaner are arriving in the same company vehicle, the consumer is getting passed less in gas and vehicle maintenance costs, and so on.

The second way is to identify the one or two most needed, most expensive services, and find a way to lower costs for just those services significantly. Maybe something like babysitters that function as small, suburban neighborhood daycares during peak daycare hours, and the babysitters would fill the rest of their work week elsewhere in the company.

Now! We have the poor with a lower cost of living, providing relief services to the middle class in a way designed to grow into the new food production, the new clothing industry, new banks, new schools, new hospitals... and when you have all these things, you can make whole cities that are largely autonomous. Again the concept is to bring under one roof smaller versions of all the needed things in life that have become the large problematic systems that currently exist, giving citizens the real power to either force those institutions to change, or replace them. When you have new cities, they can demand or create much larger change in government, in power production, in raw material sourcing for things like lumber and fuel. And hey can be built on purpose, instead of the chaotic haphazard growth typical of current cities. If citizens want to live sustainable, socially progressive lifestyles, it behooves them to live in municipalities explicitly designed to facilitate that.

This is my solution.

It starts with a single building. A single community. I have planed the building and community, budgeted it, designed it to be able to grow into these larger solutions. I have started the procedure to create it, taken the first small steps.

step One A: Creative Suite (already working with a small team on this)

My plan is to run several big fundraisers over the next year and partner with an SF Bay Area municipality (probably Oakland) to open a public arts production center by converting a warehouse.

The purpose would be to have a creative recreation suite with communal equipment and spaces, such that, if you wanted, for example, to make a music demo, or do a pod cast, or make cooking videos for youtube, you could easily accomplish that using the space and equipment available in the arts production center. To include:

dance floor / props and body work space

music center / DJ booth and instruments

recording studio - both audio and visual, with lighting, green screen, mics, cameras sound proofing

singing booths - individual sized sound proof recording studios, wired with a mic and output

industrial kitchen - large fridge space, rangetop and large oven, utensils / tools, big counter top

painting studio - surfaces (not always canvas) paints, brushes, frames

Crafting studio - buy bulk discount from creative center for reuse in berkeley?

wood and metal shop - partner with a tool library? is it possible to get a recyclable high-density ceramic 3-D printer to print tools with?

electronic repair (and robotics?) center

stage / small theater space / workshop with attached makeup studio

sewing and costuming – sewing machines and cloth bolts etc

gaming center - table top rpgs, card games, board games etc outdoor component, pool table, anything we can get a good deal on

computer bank - about 5 computers for general use / e games

leave one/take one library, scattered 1-2 person writers nooks

garden center

Amazingly my estimates from initial research indicates I can put a cheap, functional version of this together for about twenty thousand dollars. In terms of installing this stuff in like, an otherwise un-refurbished warehouse. Even if I spend $35k, that’s like, a new car. Plus I want the first month or so of funding to run the place up front. That’s gonna be water, garbage (it’s a lot for the dumpster a place like this needs) a shitload of electricity, and 3 people’s worth of monthly salaries to start.

Then there’s the rent or lease, which runs about $2 per square foot in the SF Bay, and I’ll need at least 5 grand a month’s worth of space. Plus monthly supplies, for whatever deals on paint and stuff we can scrounge. That means the monthly operating costs are like $25k a month. Hence large fundraisers for the initial build out and first month’s operating. Plus you draw your initial arts center membership from the fundraiser attendees.

Which, I’ve thrown warehouse parties before, so I think I can hit a target of a couple hundred people at each party spending $35 apiece. There’s a trick to it – you keep the cover charge low or non-existent, and then provide a lot of opportunities to spend money inside, like games and food and stuff. Low or no charge to attend drives attendance up, and then you have more people spending money.

One key element is, you fill out the paperwork to be a catering company. Not only do you use this to sell food at the event, but ALSO it allows you to file for a single-use liquor license so you can have a bar. Usually there are a finite number of liquor licenses in a municipality, and they can go for millions of dollars. But with a catering company’s single event liquor license you can legally sell alcohol at the party. NOW we’re talking money.

anyway, I’m HOPING I can find state, federal, or municipal grants and assistance programs for the arts (and also, maybe some kind of, entrepreneurial support programs, but for like, small personal internet ventures?) Maybe even get some city to cut the rent in half by forgiving the property taxes on the warehouse or something. If I can’t, I may have to adjust the fundraising vs start date timing. Membership will be a monthly fee like a gym. I’d love for it to be free, and will certainly stay open to anything that allows that, but by the numbers it’ll have to be about $50 a month. Still, that’s like a 24 our fitness membership. One refill of gasoline. About one person’s share of an electricity bill. A phone payment. It’s a doable monthly bill for a lot of people. Monthly budget to be supplemented using the space, for example dance classes, ticketed theater performances, live band music shows, etc. So it’s possible we could drive membership prices way down. and maybe certain days or times could be free to the public or something. I want it to be accessible. Of the 3 monthly salaries mentioned above (each at $20 an hour) one is for me and that’s all I need, enough money to live on and access to this facility. There’s no way I can figure out how to afford this kind of creative suite for just me, but I might be able to figure out how to make one a whole bunch of us can afford This is just the first step of a very involved something I’ve been putting together since forever. But even if I only ever accomplish this first nesting-doll of a scheme, I’ll be very pleased.

The Creative Suite is like, an egg. And it should hatch into a little baby iteration of a socio-economic worm I’ve conceived.

If I can grow it to the full beast, it should become a self replicating, bottom-up revolutionary process that could improve the lives of many millions of people and put more power over our personal day to day lives back into the hands of the common public.

I have thousands of words in hundreds of research drafts and notes and exploratory essays, etc, but… Roughly speaking that looks like

flip the Creative Suite into MN Building One, a scheme designed to allow minimum wage workers to access more free time, lower their cost of living, and build equity by acquiring and owning their own property. Mortgage is paid off in ten years. Meanwhile

Building One starts up a business called Full Service Living that leverages group economics to allow for ethically sourcing goods while addressing the issue that middle class nuclear families with two adults face 4 full time adults’ worth of labor to maintain the household and raise the children.

Full Service Living becomes FSL Pro, in which the first group offers the next group of minimum wage workers their old building (cutting out the banks from the process) while acquiring a second building, gives the new people in Building One entry level jobs in FSL that pay better than minimum wage, while adding second tier careers to the mix living in Building Two – lawyers, accountants, mechanics, teachers, etc. These two groups continue to propagate more communities in their paired type one and type two buildings. Each of these community pairs contains the seeds for various institutions designed into them, and are meant to cooperatively grow into:

Community Support Centers. These offer a variety of support services to surrounding communities. Such as: day care and after school programs, tax and bill/budgeting assistance, legal advice/support. The sum of the total efforts by all parties is designed to blossom into:

A school A construction and landscaping company A public owned Credit Union/Bank A public service law office An ethical clothing line An alternative low footprint locally sourced supermarket I call Alt-mart (Alt-mart works hand in hand with a food production construct I have in mind. It’s a little involved for this breakdown)

All that with room for other endeavors people see a need for. The initial concept brings most issues of modern life under a single multi-family roof such that communities are afforded the opportunity and resources to create alternatives to the flawed or corrupt institutions with which we are currently participating.

When that all coalesces into networks of these communities and institutions, we’ll have all the necessary pieces to the puzzle and I hope a city will be built. I’ve designed many elements of it. Engineering as well as socio-political and economic design. But who knows if I’ll ever get there.

More detailed breakdown of the plan follows:

Project Overview and Concept Exploration:

Begins with providing affordable housing, property ownership, and upward mobility to minimum wage workers. Becomes a network of live/work facilities with a focus on sustainable entrepreneurialism, accessible autonomy, and community outreach.

These facilities function as socio-economic labs - they are on paper corporations, to access any advantages, protections, and loop-holes available to the corrupt institutions currently running the economy. They target the large corporations, ultimately seeking to end them. They produce businesses such as restaurants that grow all their own food, and doctors that are paid for by the apartment complex to provide medical care to residents.

Additionally, theses facilities provide a new way of life, in a format that allows for autonomy, but also allows for successful participation in the current economy... where all the money is.They also attempt to alleviate the time crunch problem for the middle class, wherein managing a household and raising a family is actually three or four full time jobs.

As such, the facilities are designed to grow into these large businesses/institutions:

SCHOOL

A preschool through junior college school on 3 cooperative campuses, wherein the school functions as a microcosm of the economy as a whole for the purpose of study: school gardens provide cafeteria food; school wood shops produce school furniture; economy classes figure out how the school budget can afford the water, fertilizer, metal, and wood.

3rd graders have classes in the garden learning the biome and doing the weeding; 8th graders are each growing 3ftX3ft gardens and helping in the large garden; 11th graders are cross-pollenating and designing green housing and aquaponic systems; bachelor students are splicing plant genes in the lab.

But by then some of the students have stopped being involved in the garden, and are making replacement hinges for all the school doors as metal shop homework or squeezing enough money out of the school budget for a big homecoming event.

By the third campus, students are living on site, so there is housing to manage. Student store and cafeteria provide economic interactions; the whole of our socio-economic society done small for study and practice, under a single administration instead of our current system of a scholastic career being broken up into mismatched administrations, which is a disservice to our students.

ALT-MART

A facility meant to compete with Target and Walmart and Whole Foods etc. It grows from the live/work facility kitchen and meal-plan set up. Alt-mart features a permanent farmer’s market, supplemented with an onsite garden/nursery. There is an onsite industrial kitchen and restaurant that uses overstock from the farmer’s market and ingredients from the garden, possibly purchasing all unsold produce from the farmer’s market at a discount.

The restaurant offers prepared foods for sale to the public, kitchen processes overstock into consumer goods like ketchup, frozen microwaveable breakfast burritos, and canned corn. Bakery also, of course. Facility also features a tool-library with a 3-d printer that can print any tools not on the shelves.

Additionally features local tailoring and a second hand clothing store. The local tailors get access to all the second-hand pieces for use in making their own clothes to sell onsite, as well as some facility-bought cloth and onsite machinery (sewing machines to textile machines like tuffters, gins, and looms).

Toy aisle is franken-toy land, where in-house creative DIYers take second hand toys and make whole new toys out of them. Electronics section is mostly repair, and offers lessons in repair. Book-nook and greeting card section features local/community writers. And so on. The goal is to offer an alternative to the big one-stop-shop stores, with a focus on local/community sourcing.

CONSTRUCTION COMPANY

This business grows out of building maintenance and groundskeeping into a landscaping company, then into a construction company. It should be the company used by the network of facilities for any renovations and repairs, so it should grow quite large.

COMMUNITY-OWNED CREDIT UNION (and LAW OFFICE)

Basically a non-profit bank, that offers community outreach for people who need help with budgeting, would like to learn about mortgages and homeownership, etc. Grows out of a Community Support Center that also offers community office space and legal advice.

FIRST STOP HOSPITAL

Not a full hospital, at least not at first, this should just be a few medical professionals that can answer common questions, provide emergency medical response, and assess medical conditions. Not for treatment so much as to find out what kind of treatment you need and who to get it from. Where first-time parents bring their babies when they’re not sure if they need o bring their baby to an emergency room. Honestly, medical care is the hardest part of this whole thing and I'm not sure if it's going to be possible or what to do about it.

CATERING AND EVENTS COMPANY

This is what get’s the ball rolling, the catering folds into the care-taking positions within the facilities, and the events company later become basically the arts entertainment and media/information division. There's a traveling circus element. It's fun.

These projects can possibly culminate in a whole large, sustainable city built from the ground up, that I have outlined. It involves building a large hill and two small lakes. I am happy to talk a lot more about that, but it clearly necessitates all the above pieces and more.

OKAY, so much for the overview. Let’s start at the beginning. The loan is for 2 million dollars, for a property of 1 million and another million in remodel costs.

Note: I ran the following numbers for California. Obviously property values and minimum wages are different other places, but the concept should still be applicable. Additionally, these are preliminary estimates only. Additional research and budgeting is required.

____________________________________________________________________

First I have to tell you about a type of loan called “Micro debt”

Basically, if you loan 10 people a total of 100k, they are each responsible for 10k of debt. If one of them defaults, the other nine split their debt, so now each of them has about 11k of debt, which is payable as it is not a significant increase in debt per person. However, this also encourages them to all help make sure nobody defaults on the debt -- for example, if one person is in danger of defaulting because their car was totaled and they can’t get to work, there are nine other people with a vested interest in making sure that person gets access to a vehicle or ride share. If a person starts to default on payments because they are drinking all the time, there are nine other people who are going to drag the to AA meetings.

A couple of banks in Bangladesh and Germany have had success with this, citing a 98% repay rate which is a few percent better than the average home loan repay rate here in the United States. Additionally, there are at least a couple million people who have this structure of loan here in the states, so it's not unheard of nor untested, even specifically in our own economy.

_______________________________________________________________________

SO. 28 people get what is essentially a home loan for 2 million dollars. We'll call them group A. They each have about a $71,000 mortgage, their share of the loan. (note, an average mortgage in California is like, nearly half a million, so, less than a hundred thousand is a GOOD mortgage)

Group A buys property (ideally unused/abandoned industrial sites or dilapidated property in low income areas) for about a million, maybe a little under, and builds a facility on it for about a million, maybe a little over. (I looked at apartment building costs per square foot and reviewed properties currently for sale in California to get these numbers).

Some of the money is earmarked for partnering with the city on local infrastructure - so, say the streets in that neighborhood need repaving, we might buy all the materials for the city to do that, saving them money, incentivizing the city to work with us on rezoning and permits, while at the same time those kinds of improvements are an investment in the value of the property. This is because many of those buildings are not zoned as live-work the way this project requires, and rezoning without incentivizing the city to cooperate is a nightmare.

The facility is 60 bedrooms, with an industrial kitchen, plenty of diverse common space, and shared facilities (like at a gym: banks of private shower stalls, even a hot tub and a sauna, because if you’re going to ask people to give up single use showers in their own apartments, you want to add value).

Group A moves in and rents remaining rooms to an additional 28 people, we'll call them Group B.

Now, out of 60 rooms we have 56 people living in the facility. 10 of them are caretakers. Instead of paying money, they pay their way in labor, and they additionally receive a monthly stipend of 500 dollars a month to start. The caretakers do all the building maintenance and groundskeeping, they do the housekeeping and laundry, they make sure the bills are all paid, and they provide (cook) a meal plan. Utilities are all included in rent.

This means that anyone renting there has a single, affordable monthly bill for their cost of living, never has to cook, never has to do laundry or wash a dish. I call this Full Service Living. And the budget is for 60 but only 56 are planned in, with 4 slots available for social outreach, so this community can offer semi-temporary room and board for free to women fleeing abusive relationships, disabled veterans, homeless people with children, rehabilitated felons, whoever they want to help.

All this for a single payment of $1,000 per month, per paying resident.

Rent, food, utilities, housekeeping, everything. In an area where rent alone is more than that. This guarantees that a person making local minimum wage can afford to live, and pretty decently, with more free time and less headache.

When the building is paid off, if they want, Group A will each have a room to live in, plus a room to receive rent from, as income.

Let's break down the budget for this so far

(60 people, minus 10 caretakers and 4 outreach residents, equals 46 paying residents)

Per Month Costs to Paying Residents:

Meal plan for 60 people = $5,000.00

60 person phone plan = $1,800.00

Internet sufficient for a business: $400.00

Water bill for 60 people = $1,800.00

Electricity for 60 people = $3,600.00

Garbage bill for 60 people = $2,000.00

Caretaker stipend = $5,000.00

(subtotal: $19,600.00)

Building/Community fund = $1,853.002

million dollar mortgage = $21,213.00

Property tax = $3,334.00

Total: $46,000.00= $1,000 per paying resident per month, roughly $600 “room” and $400 “board” with as many costs of living as possible paid as one low bill.

Sharing a room adds a "board" payment to the room, so if you move a romantic partner in with you and split it evenly, you each pay $700. I also have discount rate breakdowns for people with children in various scenarios, but it starts to get complicated for what is supposed to be a simple overview. Basically it comes down to an inherent flexibility in the meal plan; the fact that a food budget for 60 people easily accommodates an extra mouth to feed could allow a group to offer a single parent a separate room for their child with no board payment, so they could live in two rooms for $1,500; stuff like that.

At those payments, the building is paid off in ten years. TEN. Our low income earners don't have to wait 30 years to be actual property owners, and they only have to give the bank an added $500k instead of the 1.4 million a 30 year mortgage would net.

Here is one place people replicating the format and participating in their own group can do whatever they want. The 28 building shareholders have the option of leaving everything the same but owning the place outright, which means they are no longer paying the ~$500 mortgage portion of their bills, instead each receiving about $500 in rent from the other residents, which is a net gain of $1k per month each in disposable income. Or they could all just sell the building and split the money 28 ways. Or they could all move out and use the entire building to generate residual income. Anything is good, we've made almost 30 people property owners and built them equity for only minimum wage while they provided relief services to the surrounding community, so anything they think is best, we've already done it good.

Ideally they move into a second building and sell the first building to group B, which is what the very first group will have to do to complete the seeding of the entire project.

SO. The two buildings I mention represent two stages of the greater project. Full Service Living, and Full Service Living Professional (hereafter FSL, and FSL Pro)

In the first stage, you have 10 caretakers providing full service living to 46 paying individuals, most of whom make minimum wage, and 4 social outreach recipients. FSL is basically getting as much of your life as possible handled with a single low bill, something similar to living in a good hotel.

To expand, The caretakers additionally seek to offer this service to middle class households - these homes already hire a house cleaner, a gardener, use a dry-cleaner, order delivery food, so they are prime clients. As middle class households become clients, the caretakers need more people to handle the work load, and the other people living in the facility quit their minimum wage jobs and work for the FSL company. This will earn the group profits as a whole while paying the individuals close to $25 an hour. THIS allows the second building to be much nicer.

With a second, much nicer building, the 28 people move in, and they find 28 new renters from higher up the economic food chain. These folks need to earn at least 35k a year and include people from a specific list of professions. This new group of 28 shall be referred to hereafter as the tenants.

The rent agreement is unique: The 28 tenants pay about 2k per month each for the same package, the FSL company from the first building provides all the housekeeping, meal plan, etc. The tenants also agree to pay one third of any increase in their wages, up to a cap, with the money going toward renovations, improvements, and additional services and amenities. This means as your income increases, you pay more actual dollars, but a smaller percentage of your over all income

So if you are making 35k you earn 3k a month, which means you pay 2/3 of your income to the facility (many people spend this much on rent plus food). If you double your income, you now earn 6k per month. Your rent package would go up by 1/3 of your additional income, or one thousand dollars, and you would still have an extra two thousand dollars per month of personal discretionary income. You would have started out paying 2/3 of your income, but now you’d be paying only 1/2 your income. Your building improves, your life improves, but you’ll always be able to afford it, and every raise you get does give you more spending money. Additionally, the staff is motivated to really give you all the support they can, as a well supported individual is more likely to have monetary success.

And one more important thing. Tenants either pay an additional 500 bucks a month in money, OR they offer $500 of their professional services to residents of the facility. Unclaimed time must be made available to the surrounding public for free.

So, say a paralegal values her time at $50 dollars an hour for qualified legal advice (such as, do I need a lawyer for this? what kind of lawyer do I need? What is this legal process going to look like?). The 50 residents only use an hour this month, so something like 9 appointments should be made available to the surrounding community for free - the facility staff will handle outreach (letting the community know of the offer via flyers etc). They will handle making the appointments according to her availability, and will provide the facility’s communal office space to hold them in.

These programs allow businesses to grow in a very low risk environment. Let’s look at a day care worker. She’s a classroom assistant at a day care, going to school part time to finish her teaching degree. She offers residents hours of baby sitting as her $500 service. As she earns more money, the facility also earns more money, and can renovate a space that sometimes functions as a play room for kids. No longer going to school, she is earning more money, the facility hires a permanent babysitter or two, and she manages them. Free to residents, they accept neighborhood kids for a reasonable fee. Low cost good quality day care becomes available to the neighborhood. She’s a class lead at a good school now, making more money, so the facility can afford to hire classroom assistants and the baby-sitting / daycare starts offering after-school programs to older children, well on its way to being a small private school, with our tenant running it.

Similarly, restaurants and construction companies grow out of offering facility residents goods and services.

To recap the ideal situation here: 28 people live in a nice 60 bedroom facility. They own a business in a neighboring facility, which houses workers who are paid fairly, but who also pay the first group monthly on a ten year lease (instead of paying a bank) -- after which that second group owns the building they live in and no longer has to pay. Everyone’s cooking, cleaning, laundry, are all done for them. By now their meals are largely made from the facility’s garden and aquaponics greenhouse, which includes a fish-farming pool, a few goats, a cow or two, and some chickens and ducks. Living with them in the facility is their lawyer, their nurse, their electronics expert, etc. They’re all part owners in their own non-profit bank/credit union, and there is an onsite day care, gym, and communal workshop. The group offers outreach programs to the surrounding community: low cost high quality day care, legal advice. They provide semi-temporary room and board to those in need, such as women fleeing abusive relationships, disabled veterans, and the homeless (especially those with children). They are an active part of an ongoing socio-economic program designed to give low-income housing, property ownership, retirement options, and upward mobility to minimum wage workers, as well as alternatives to broken institutions to all.

By the time they pay off the second building’s mortgage, the first building has been paid for over again, and THAT group can move into a ANOTHER FSL Pro building, offering their new building to a new round of pro tenants while offering that first building to a THIRD round of low income workers.

The first 28 people achieve all of this, building ownership, business proprietorship, community support, within the same thirty years it takes to pay off a standard home loan, starting with nothing more than entry level jobs and this master plan.

From there, growth continues. More buildings are offered to more low income earners. More facilities means more services, amenities, cooperative power, a stronger micro-economy. Political influence also increases with membership...

Eventually, you can take all these businesses and facility/communities, and go build a whole city, which looks a little like this

See the problem with cities is they grew organically. No one ever sat down and said “we know we want a hundred thousand people to live here -- what is the best design for that?” Instead is was just, some people, and then some more people, and then some more...

So.

You go out in the middle of wherever. You dig two GIANT holes. You take the dirt from the holes and you build a nice big hill. You fill the holes with water and you have two lakes. Now you have a nice place people want to live, nestled between the lakes, under the hill. It gives you enough water and topography to create a resource feedback loop and control things like wind and sun exposure.

You regulate everything for sustainability, design it from the ground up.

Current municipalities have to provide everything for the public from a budget that largely comes from property tax, which is 2% of the property value. That’s why when there’s something like a homelessness problem, there is no money to address it properly.

This city holds all the property in a trust administered by the elected city officials. Instead of rent paid to private landlords, the public leases their homes and businesses directly from the city, which keeps rents low and controlled and gives the city an incredibly large budget compared to current municipalities, which allows them to provide outstanding public services -- transportation, healthcare, parks -- as well as giving them enough budget to address any issues like homelessness. Regulation and organization for sustainability as a whole city addresses the fact that existence is always interlocked issues. For example:

Grey water. In this city, only approved cleansers are allowed for sale or use (and the city provides one. Because the city provides it, it has to be cheap and easy, which means that there is always room for improvement, or, a business selling better cleansers for more money. But no one will ever go without one available, even if they are broke). SO, no bleach down the drain. So you can take the grey water of the city, and dump it on the top of the hill into a manmade creek/river, which starts full of rocks, then pebbles, then sand (a natural filtration process) flows down the hill and ends up in the first lake, which is recreational. The second lake sits a little lower, and the water flows into it from the first lake. In the second lake there are fish farming and bi-valve farming, which additionally filters the water (especially bi-valves like fresh water muscles, which feed by straining the water through organic filters and not-for-food populations should be in the first lake as well). The city pulls its water from the second lake through its combination water purification facility / power plant. The power plant uses a steam turbine already so we simply run that steam through a charcoal filter, and re-condense it into molecularly clean water for municipal use; this uses our existing power generator, instead of requiring massive amounts of additional power.

That’s just one example. The city has it’s own sustainable agriculture program, and grows it’s own food. There are public meal plans, and a lot of organization of the city economy that I just don’t have the energy to get into here.

These designs allow a large group of people to live with very little environmental impact. It would be healthier for the citizens. And it would encourage a certain amount of political unity, while removing a lot of stress from modern life.

The city is modular in growth. So when the city population doubles, roughly half of them build a city nearby and live there.

_______________________________________________________________________

Aside from the first two facilities (and then probably the first of the cities, if that happens) I don't need or want to be involved. As it replicates into more and more facilities, the baseline should remain: "here is a format by which minimum wage workers can own property and grow wealth in a way that allows them more control over their lives and denies profits to existing corrupt industries and corporations -- copy it if you want and suit it to your own group of residents”

I don't want to tell people how to live or what to do, I want to give them tools and templates to improve their own lives, whatever that looks like to them.

Anyway, believe it or not, this is only about a tenth of the detail I’ve put into this. I can never get the whole picture of any of this out in one go, but I've spent a lot of time on all the details which, as you can tell, are innumerable. The ways in which the FSL buildings act as entrepreneurial incubators by cutting start-up overhead to nearly zero while providing an initial customer base of 60 regulars, the various permutations that could address specific scenarios, the details of how to add gardens and fish and food production supplemented by ethical food sourcing.. I could just. keep. going. forever.

It addresses the whole tangled set of problems. You have to help high population areas, but also go out to the middle of the country. You have to help low income earners and people in poverty, but also our middle class is struggling. You have to do things that effect education, infrastructure, ocean management, industrialized food production, population density/overcrowding issues, helps prevent homelessness, creates better jobs for workers of big box stores while providing affordable more sustainable alternatives to their customers...

I think this plan does all that and more.

I’m exhausted and can’t find all my work on this right now, it’s buried in email chains and computer back ups, but I think I more or less encapsulated it. Good night

14 notes · View notes

dotumblerworld · 5 years

Text

How to Build a Log Splitter in 7 Simple Ways

Are you toiling some woodwork at your backyard this weekend? Splitting logs could be one of the most tiring tasks you do around the house. In some extent, you may prefer to hire a skilled worker to do it for you. But, what if there’s not enough workforce that can help you gather the cut big pieces of wood, much less split them?In that case, perhaps, it’s about time to do it yourself. But, you may not always have that energy to cut the log splitter with your bare hands and strength. More so, have enough bucks to purchase wood splitting tools from hardware shops so you can cut wood easier as they can be expensive.You might need a log splitter for that matter. So, how to build a log splitter?

Before we learn the skill of building it, what is a log splitter, by the way?

I. Defining Log Splitter

A log splitter is an equipment used to split pre-cut firewood. This pre-cut wood may have come from hardwood logs or softwood. Log splitters usually go with an electric chainsaw or a manual saw.

II. Building a Log Splitter

Building a log splitter may sound confusing, but, it’s not as complicated as you think it is. You just have to follow the below steps simply:Prepare a sliding wedge and have it in a horizontal or vertical position. But, one source suggests that the vertical one is rarely used.Use an axle to support the taillights and stabilizers.You may use the spare parts of a damaged vehicle or raw pieces of metal for your beams.Before welding your metal pieces, make sure you have prepared enough for galvanizing.If your beams seem to be a bit light, use your judgment on what to spit and how to do it.If you want to mobilize your splitter easily, you may use spare tires on your DIY log splitter.Use steel as your foot plate but choose the stronger grade of steel.If your steel bars and beams need no welding but screwdrivers, then, let the screwdriver set does its work.For a detailed process on how to build a log splitter, you may visit Beckmannag.

III. Why is a homemade log splitter?

So, why do it yourself when you can just buy it from the store? Obviously, for economic reasons. Everyone wants to save money by exhausting all alternatives just to avoid spending a dime or two. And as mentioned in the outset, log splitting tools can be very costly. Hence, the DIY

IV. Types of Log Splitters

The types of log splitters can be categorized according to their power options; gas, hydraulic, electric. The best thing about gas-powered splitters is that they can go anywhere. Electric splitters need a power source to function. Hydraulic log splitters are best used for commercial scale; only that they can be dangerous when stopped immediately when technical problems arise.These three powered log splitters are a bit expensive. If you want the most economical one, use manual wood splitters. But still, the choice is yours to make.

V. Log Splitters to choose from

Lest you are having a hard time deciding which DIY log splitter to build, here’s a short-list of log splitters to help you take your pick:1. Small and Portable

The word itself says something about the kind of log splitter you should build. Anything that always goes handily is lovely. So, opt for a small and portable log splitter to make your life easier.2. Two-way Log SplitterWant a quick and easy way to cut your wood? A two-way log splitter has it all. It is a potent one that it can cut both small and large pieces of wood in just a matter of seconds.3. No-lifting Wood SplitterDo you want to get rid of the hassle of lifting? No-lifting wood splitter should be your pick. It will live the pieces of wood for you, and even put them into place on the machine.4. Manual Log Splitter

Well, manual log splitters will always be part of the options. Building a manual splitter requires a tiny out-of-the-pocket expense. It goes to show that manual log splitters will always be a good choice.Well, I have just given you three among the many DIY log splitters out there. You can look for more DIY splitters at The Self-Sufficient Living website.You may also check out this video for more details:

VI. How useful are log splitters?

Apart from the fact that log splitters can cut wood, they can also save you from that demanding job you are about to do. Imagine yourself cutting pieces of wood into bigger sizes or debris with your bare hand using a chainsaw, isn’t that pain in your neck?Also, with the people trying to live a more sustainable, cheaper lifestyle, wood has become a primary commodity. It goes without saying that there is a growing demand for the use of wood, not to mention, log splitting tools. Just look at the potentials of having your log splitters for business.And remember, ready-made log splitters are good, but, as far as being economical is concerned, homemade log splitters are better than.

VII. Conclusion

Building a log splitter is quite a difficult task. When pieces of wood have piled up, and your chainsaw or your bare hands could no longer serve you, then, buying a log splitter may come to mind. But, consider building your log splitter by your own, too. Surely, it can save your penny.Did you find the listed DIY log splitters helpful? Feel free to share this with others through your Social Media account. We also care about what you have to say, so leave your comments below.Read on electric vs gas log splitter comparison here.

Best Splitting Maul From Amazon.

Quick Comparisons: Top Five Splitting Axes

Picture Best Pick

Products Fiskars X27 Super Splitting Axe Size 36” Notable Feature/s Bevel convex blade Warranty Lifetime warranty Rating 4.6 Price See Details Picture Read the full article

#Woodworking

0 notes

marieeabigail-blog · 5 years

Text

Prescription of Inspiration

It was five in the morning when the cold breeze touched her and woke her up to go to school. Her nine year old self started to fix herself while seeing all the bills the family needed to pay for the month. It was not just a shivering day for her, but rather it was an another day to squeeze her mind on how to get away with the difficulty that chased them for how many years.

It was also five in the morning when she realized that she must push herself hard to get her family away from sorrow. It was a cold morning when she kept in her mind that going to United States may probably solve the burden of her family.

My sister Criselle is always my inspiration to do well since day one. On her 31 years of age, she did not do anything that would bring sufferings to my family. I look up to her for being the best sister, the best daughter to my parents, and my bestfriend especially when she was still here in the Philippines.

She is gifted, I must admit that. An elementary valedictorian, had honorable mention in a science high school, a graduate from University of the Philippines Manila with the degree of BS Physical Therapy, and recently became a doctor of physical therapy with her degree in University of Montana. She really dedicated herself on studying medical terms and we are really proud of her for reaching on to the top.

But before going to the limelight, she faced struggles that she thought she could not surpass.

We really did not come from a financially stable family. We used to live in a house made of wood in a small lot near the mountain. We had difficulties in sustaining our needs, as my parents needed to take care of their four children. When my sister passed the UPCAT, she had to stay in my grandmother's house since my family cannot support her needs. She faced Manila alone and hoped for a brighter future in line with the new challenge she faced.

Studying in UP Manila was hard. She saw herself in a corner of a classroom reading her xerox copies of a 500 page book while her classmates studied with their original copies or read with the pdf copies on their laptops. My grandmother's support was not enough anymore, so my sister worked in a Jollibee near the campus after her classes so she can still study at day. She remembered herself eating nothing but only Sky Flakes to at least lessen her hunger. When she could not do it anymore, she stopped for one semester, looked lost and unhappy, as she told herself that she might not graduate in time. That time, she thought she was a failure.

But she was not. In 2011, she graduated from UP and she also passed the licensure exams for her to become a licensed physical therapist. Then, she started working at several hospitals while taking care of her papers that can lead her on going to the United States. When she thought the challenges were done, she was wrong.

It took her three frustrating years before going to US. Failures of getting the right agency to send her off depressed and led her to the darkest days of her life. It was really a melancholic situation, as she dreamed it since she was still a kid. Going still, she waited until in 2014, when she finally flew away from the Philippines and started her new journey there.

Working miles away from us was difficult. She had to endure the nights without our presence. She had to be independent. But all of her hardships were worth it. Later on, she bought an iPhone, went to concerts of her favorite artists, used her money to buy stuff and travel in the different parts of the US, and especially she studied again to be the doctor of physical therapy.

These things motivate me to do better. I realized that I have privileges - I can say that my family is in a better state now, I have my gadgets to use for studying, I can have my needs, and I don't have to work to have my allowance. There are times that I say that I don't want to study anymore since there are circumstances that the only thing I can do is to bow my head and cry my eyes out of frustration and tiredness. But as I make this entry, I think that I am lucky to still study without much agony.

My sister taught me how to be strong amidst the challenges. I learned that I must be a lion-hearted. Being a coward to face all of the struggles does not make you any successful, but rather it makes you weak and suspectible to failures. We encounter failure sometimes, but we should not let it to bring us down. We should use it as a motivation to do better and become the best person we want to be.

I am thankful that I have my sister as my inspiration. When talking about it, it was hard to think someone as my booster to continue doing my best, but I am never wrong of choosing her. She taught me the best life lessons I can bring when it gets difficult. She taught me at the way she taught herself years ago. Few years later, I would further see how cruel and challenging the world is, but I can never fail her. Giving up also means I let her hardships and dreams on me to become a waste. Giving up my dreams also means I failed her as her sister and a patient she prescribed with words and experiences. So as much as I can, I will do my best to give the recognition she deserves - not by giving her medals, but rather by living the life she dreamed and built its foundation for me.

It was five in the morning when the cold breeze touched her and woke her up. She started to fix herself while seeing the bills she payed days ago. It may be a shivering day for her, but the warmth of her success and her family's support hugged her. She did it. Criselle finally did it.

But it was also five in the morning when the cold breeze touched her and woke her up to go to school. She looked in her sleeping parents, smiled and said that someday, she will also do what her sister did to them. It is a difficult journey to start with, but with the words of her sister, she believes she can do it.

I believe I can do it.

0 notes

lovelyfantasticfart · 4 years

Text

Obtain Change By Self Enchancment Hypnosis

You will not discover any episodes newer than 2013, however you'll wish to peruse the older episodes for timeless nuggets of knowledge to data you through your weight-loss and fitness journey. If there are areas of your life during which you want to see constructive change or enchancment then self improvement hypnosis might be the answer. See the results below. Good luck- that's a way more complicated query than I can reply, and it involves starting a whole profession. Even the most experienced constructing or house owner lacks the data and expertise of an expert inspector who has inspected lots of, and perhaps hundreds of homes and buildings of their career. Whereas important residence enhancements can develop actually costly, property homeowners need to avoid utilizing residence loans to fund renovations till it is totally needed. Leave them free to be taught what they need, while offering suggestions--which they're free to disregard--and support.

6. Having taken a stab at sociology and political science, let me wrap up economics whereas I'm at it. You need not sympathize those who are sick. Past that, you can search citation websites for quotes taken from pre-1923 works (in the US), or quotes from people who died more than 70 years in the past. Relying on your state of affairs, asking you to forgive and neglect might be challenging, particularly if your companion was with one other individual. Overcoming the addictions associated with cigarette smoking will be an overwhelming prospect, nevertheless. A much superior mannequin in my view, if you'll be able to pull it off, is to get someone to learn one thing primarily because he finds it interesting. You buy them from shops or another person does before you get them. Get enough relaxation. Physical fatigue has a unfavorable impact on voice. Get care to not more than tweeze your eyebrows. So, as an alternative of increasing bids so that you are paying more per acquisition, you increase alternatives so that you are sustaining low conversion prices and increasing conversion numbers. Pictures of actual physical objects that individuals can acknowledge are all the time extra inviting than graphs, which are generic and abstract.

It is not that whether or not we triggered it determines whether or not we will cure it. 7 days can remove this buildup, leaving your hair shiny, bouncy and whole of lifestyle. A. I may also help a bit of bit. The duty of reaching out to people to achieve their targets, which many occasions they fail to realize, as a result of lack of the right motivation or steering. Later it turns out it was quite intentional when the evil factor really occurs. Good factor the roads in California are lined with reflective markers, as a result of in any other case I may need driven the Lexus ES 300 into the ocean last evening. Make it potential on your thighs and arms are parallel with one another. One may go to other websites reminiscent of Amazon or eBay. Regardless that each the Japanese and American methods are called suggestion programs, they are completely totally different. Tremendous suggestion needs solely be done as soon as a day, steered time is before lunchtime. In order for you to save your relationship no matter their dishonest deeds, you will need to try and forgive them so as to enable you to come collectively to conserve your marriage. When going right into a lawsuit, you'll want to know all of the choices that you have and if there's a plea discount obtainable.

At present, there aren鈥檛 any enterprise accreditation prerequisites relating particularly to be a locksmith. Please don't be uncomfortable with trying before you purchase, and make sure that you rigorously look at the Locksmith service earlier than handing over some hard earned money. Do not keep occurring about it when your partner desires out of the marriage. For self-hypnotizers: this is a way you naturally would come out of that trance state: you'd simply open your eyes, stretch and communicate. What experiences have readers had? Stating that he or she specializes in that number of case does not point out they've encounter. With this unbelievable data accessible, it's good to have no difficulty converting your baseball experience near. For ultimate results, any subject areas must be pre-handled with an acceptable cleansing solution before you use the carpet cleaner. Life has not been the identical since. I used lots of the identical formulation discovered in the leaderboard of my NCAA Bowl Prediction Pool sheet. However the cheaper C300 provides the identical finely finished inside, multimedia system and refinement as the C350.

It is the consumer's choice whether to incorporate suggestions out of your utility in the quick Search Field. Solely the first 512 bytes of information in the sector are used to generate suggestions. All training packages should start with a needs evaluation, therefore the needs evaluation is often step one within the training course of. Inserting down a wood, carpet, or artificial flooring will genuinely enhance varieties basement. Surveys are used to concentrate on particular areas of efficiency deficiency. Additionally after two months of this various remedy, improvements are repeatedly seen. Earlier than the days of antibiotics, candy-scented business soaps and lotions and all the opposite modern preparations that keep our our bodies wholesome and our properties clean and smelling fresh, lavender was a housewife's finest friend. MNL Truck Gross sales Critiques is a used industrial truck dealership situated in Mississippi. To be able to proceed, it is important that you're not thinking concerning the earlier events. A beneficial tip when it comes to taking part in golf is usually to by no means toss your organizations. A lacking door lock plunger was additionally replaced during this journey at no charge. The graphs. The labels on the graphs. Consider a colon and/or liver cleanse.

from Blogger https://ift.tt/2UQcuNO

#Blogger

0 notes

themanuelruello · 4 years

Text

Making and Using Compost for Your Garden

“Well, my favorite manure is horse, followed by goat or rabbit….”

I was on a call with the members of my HOMEGROWN mentorship program and those were the exact words that came out of my mouth right as a friend walked through door. I wonder what on earth he thought? ?

And this is why us homestead folk are our own breed of weird…

But yes, I do indeed have a favorite manure, because I believe manure is one of the very best garden fertilizers there is.

As I’ve done a deep dive into soil health, structure, and gardening amendments this year (this book is one of my favs right now), I’ve started to see compost and organic matter as more important than ever before.

Here’s why and how you can make your own garden gold:

What is Compost?

Quite simply, compost is decomposed organic matter. The best part? You can make your own compost. It’s basically free plant-food created by you for own your plants. Even if you live in an apartment, you can buy small compost buckets and create composted matter for your plants.

A healthy compost pile creates an environment where bacteria, fungi, worms, and insects can break down materials naturally to create a beautiful nutrient-rich material that you can add to your soil and garden.

Reasons Why You Should Use and Make Compost

Buckle up– there are LOTS!

1. Composting reduces the amount of garbage you send to the landfill.

Making compost is one of the easiest ways to do your part for the environment. According to the EPA, 28% of the garbage sent to the landfill is made up of food scraps and yard waste, which are key components to compost.

Instead of throwing them away, you can keep them for your compost pile and create something beneficial for your garden AND beneficial for the earth.

(Side note– feeding scraps to your chickens (if you have them) is another excellent way to put food scraps to good use.)

2. Compost saves money & boosts your sustainability

Compost is an almost universal answer to garden issues. Have poor garden soil? Add compost. Need to mulch your garden? Compost is an ideal choice. Want to give your plants a boost of nutrients? Make compost tea (here’s how to make compost tea).

If you want to make your own potting soil, guess what you need? Yep, compost again. And if you have raised beds like we do, those beds usually need to be topped off with additional soil or compost almost every year due to soil compression over time.

Good-quality compost from the store ain’t cheap. And if you have a large garden, the price tag on additional soil and compost might make you wince, especially if you have any sort of gardening budget.

Therefore, making your own compost makes the most sense if you need compost in any quantity at all.

3. Compost improves soil health

Instead of purchasing synthetic fertilizers and gunk, reach for homemade natural compost when your garden needs a boost. Commercial fertilizers, even organic ones, do not provide the amount of nutrients that you can get with good-quality compost. Compost gives out nutrients gradually, over a long period of time, while fertilizers are usually a “quick fix” action that only works for a limited time.

Compost also improves soil structure. Most gardeners don’t start out with great soil and compost improves your soil’s texture and boosts your soils ability to hold on to nutrients and water. Compost is loaded with beneficial microorganisms, earthworms, and other good stuff that leaves you with the perfect material to produce a healthy garden.

How to Start Composting

In order to compost, you’ll need a way to collect yard waste and food scraps. The easiest way to do this is to have both an inside composting bucket and an outdoor composting pile. Simply gather up your food scraps for the day in the inside bucket and then add that bucket of scraps to the outdoor compost pile along with your yard waste.

Selecting an Inside Composting Pail/Bucket

It doesn’t have to be fancy and a basic bucket (with a lid) under your kitchen sink will absolutely suffice. The only downfall to this method is the potential attraction of fruit flies or other bugs. (And, if the lid gets loose, it can stink up your kitchen.)

Therefore, if the simple bucket doesn’t work for your home, there are also specific compost pails for your kitchen. Lehmans has a number of designs, from wooden compost pails to vintage-styled pails and even stainless steel ones. The handy thing about kitchen compost pails is that they usually have some sort of odor-free additions with charcoal or filters, so they can look cute in your kitchen, keep the bugs away, and won��t smell bad.

Creating an Outside Compost Pile

There are many ways to keep a compost pile outside, and you can be as creative or budget-friendly as you’d like.

Here are just a few options:

Get a composting bin.

Lehmans has this composting bin, which is the perfect size for small yards or homes with strict HOA rules. A bin like this makes your composting adventures tidy and does a great job at keeping critters out of the compost. Many composting bins rotate in a way that speeds up the process, too. The downfall to the fancier bins is that sometimes they can be on the expensive side and often hold only a small amount material at a time.

Make a composting container.

As I mentioned in my Chicken Power on the Homestead article that we recently created a pallet structure in our chicken run to hold compost materials. You can make a similar composting container out of cinder blocks or other materials you have around the house. The most basic composting structures are squares with three sides of walls and the fourth side open so you can toss your composting materials in there and get them out later with relative ease.

Just make a big ol’ pile somewhere.

This is the perfect option for those with big homesteads with a spare area where you can make a huge pile of composting materials. It will look a bit sloppy, but it’s the easiest and least time-consuming way to make your own compost. The downside to a gigantic compost pile is that, depending on how big it is, it can be hard to mix it up (and mixing helps speed up the process), so it can take longer for that compost to be ready to use.

Where to Put Your Outdoor Compost Pile

In brainstorming your outdoor compost pile, it should be:

Close to your garden (so you don’t have to carry heavy loads of compost a long way to your garden)

In decent proximity to your kitchen (so you don’t get tempted to be too lazy/busy to bring your food scraps to the compost pile)

Easily accessible for your yard waste (make it easy to drive your lawnmower with grass clippings right up to the compost spot, etc.)

Depending on where you live, you might have other considerations too, such as putting it somewhere the neighbors won’t see it.

Types of Composting

There are two main types of composting you can do at home: cold and hot composting. Cold composting is a casual and slow approach to composting and hot composting is a serious and faster way to compost.

For cold composting, simply gather up your compost materials in your pile, and ignore it. (I excell at this method, hahaha) Over 1-2 years, that pile will naturally decompose. You will be doing pretty much zero additional work on your homestead and as long as you can be patient, it will eventually decompose and be ready to use.

Hot composting is for more serious gardeners or self-sufficient folks. It is a faster process, but it is also requires more work. If done properly, you will have compost ready to use in just 1-3 months. Basically, there are four necessary ingredients for hot composting: nitrogen, carbon, air, and water.

When those four ingredients are properly balanced, your compost pile gets hot (the goal is around 140 to 160 degrees Fahrenheit) and the hotter it gets, the more quickly your compost will decompose and be ready to use.

The nitrogen and carbon come from the materials you add to your compost (mentioned more below). For air and water, turn the compost often and keep it somewhat moist. If you experiment with keeping the nitrogen, carbon, air, and water ratios correct, you can feasibly get compost for your garden within a year.

If you want to get super serious about hot composting, you can probably find some local connections in my Local Food Source article. A local Master Gardener course or even local compost company that might have tours can be super helpful for getting the bigger picture about how to compost with the correct ratios of the four ingredients.

What Can You Compost?

“What can I put in my compost pile?”

I get this question from y’all quite a lot, so let’s take a closer look at composting matierals.

There are two categories of materials that you can add to your compost: Greens (aka nitrogen sources) and Browns (aka carbon sources).

If you are just casually composting (cold composting), you can add these materials freely to your compost pile. If you are more serious about your compost (hot composting), try to go for a ratio of 3 or 4 parts brown materials to 1 part green material.

Composting Tip: Whenever possible, layer the pile with lots of browns, then some greens, and repeat. Layering the materials helps aerate the pile and encourages more earthworms, which helps your compost break down more quickly.

Ideal green (nitrogen) materials for your compost include:

Fruit peelings and scraps

Vegetable peelings and scraps

Coffee grounds and coffee filters

Egg shells

Grass Clippings

Animal manure (from herbivores)

Seaweed

Fresh leaves

Tea bags

Nut shells

Spent cut flowers

Brown (carbon) materials for your compost includes…

Cardboard (includes empty toilet paper tubes. Try to rip them up into small pieces)

Newspaper

Dried leaves

Pine needles

Paper materials (shredding the paper first helps)

Straw

Hay

Sawdust and wood shavings (from untreated wood)

Cornstalks

Small twigs and small branches

Dryer lint

What You Should NOT Compost

There are so many amazing things that you can compost, but there are a few items that you should avoid adding to your compost pile. The items that you should probably NOT add to your compost can be divided into two categories:

Things that will make your compost unsafe/bad for your food-garden, and

Things that will make your compost smell and attract pests or animals.

Here are a few examples of things you should not compost because it can contaminate your future garden:

Sawdust or wood chips from chemically treated wood

Straw or hay from chemically sprayed fields (here’s what happened to my garden)

Diseased plant materials

Weeds that have gone to seed

Manure from domestic pets (like cats and dogs)

There are also things you probably should not compost because it can attract pests or animals (rats, raccoons, etc.), plus these items usually take longer to decompose and/or can make your compost very smelly.

If you are getting pretty savvy with hot composting, you can add small amounts of these items correctly. However, if you are a newbie or if you are worried about attracting pests or making neighbors angry due to the smells, I suggest avoiding putting these things in your compost pile:

Oils, fats, and cooking grease

Animal meat, scraps, and bones

Dairy products (I do think adding whey to any compost pile can be beneficial, though)

How to Care for Your Compost Pile

Don’t forget: you can always just do cold composting (aka lazy composting) if you want. It’s still a great way to keep trash out of the landfills and use your waste to eventually make free compost for your garden.

However, if you have the spare time to care for your compost pile, you’ll get rich-nutritive compost available for use much quicker.

Here’s how to care for your compost pile:

1. Add Layers of 3 or 4 parts Brown Materials to 1 part Green Material

Every time you dump your kitchen compost bucket into your outdoor compost pile, add huge scoopfuls of brown materials at the same time. You can have a pile of brown materials (such as leaves and twigs) available next to your compost so you have easy access to them.

Composting Tip: Work on getting the compost pile about 3 feet deep before you stop adding new materials and start focusing on getting it to decompose. It’s smart to have a few compost piles (3 is ideal) so you can always have one pile that is ready to use, one pile that is partially decomposed, and one that you can still add materials into.

Composting Tip: If your compost pile looks too wet and/or smells really funky, add more brown materials and turn it more often to add more air. If it looks extremely dry, add green materials and more water to get it more moist. It’s a balancing act where practice gets you closer to perfection over time.

2. Occasionally Water Your Compost Pile.

While you don’t want to over-water your compost pile, it is important that your compost does not get too dry. If you’re going through a hot and dry summer, check the pile to ensure it’s not overly dry.

3. Aerate Your Compost Pile.

Oxygen is vital to the decomposition process The more you turn your compost, the more quickly it will decompose. If you’re on a mission to compost as fast as possible, I’d recommend turning your pile at least once a week. Otherwise, once per month is fine (or whenever you remember!)

Turn compost with a garden fork or a shovel. Simply scoop up some of the material and turn it and mix it up. While mixing and turning, it should be evident if the pile needs more green or brown materials or if it needs more moisture. Also watch for earthworms and other bugs in your compost as you turn it. The more worms, the better.

Composting: Frequently Asked Questions

How long does composting take?

This depends on the type of composting you are doing. With cold composting, it will probably take 1-2 years for your compost pile to properly decompose. If you are doing hot composting and adding 3 parts brown materials to 1 part green materials as well as turning your compost often and keeping the pile moist, the pile may decompose in as early as 1 month.

You will know when your compost is ready to use because it will have become mainly dark earthy soil, instead of pieces of veggie scraps and yard waste. You can help speed up your composting process by cutting up the materials into smaller pieces.

How can I use my compost?

Remember that compost is not a replacement for your soil. Instead it is a natural fertilizer addition for your soil to help nurture your plants.

Use compost like mulch as a top layer on your existing garden beds

Make homemade potting soil

Make a compost tea for fertilizing your plants

Add it to your garden beds before planting

Top dress landscape, flower gardens, and vegetable garden halfway during the summer for a nutrition boost

Help! My compost pile smells bad and it’s attracting pests!

If your compost pile smells bad, this means your ratio of brown and green materials is off-balance. Stop adding green materials for a few weeks and add large amounts of brown materials to the compost pile. Start turning the compost pile often and wait until it stops smelling before adding your green materials again.

Do you have a good example of what to include in a perfect compost pile?

Layering 3 or 4 parts brown materials and 1 part green materials is all you really need to make your compost pile. This will depend a lot on what materials you have around your home. Here’s a sample of a good compost pile: 3 parts dry leaves, 1 part fresh grass clippings, 1 part food scraps. Layer this in 4 inch layers, turn once a week, and add water if the pile is dry.

What is vermiculture?

Vermiculture is the process of making compost with worms. Worms are not only beneficial for normal compost piles, but you can also compost solely with worms, if you have the proper container and worms. Worm castings are amazing nutritional additions for your garden soil.

If you are interested in vermiculture, I suggest reading a book or finding some online tutorials on how to do it properly. Worms are not happy with temperatures that are too hot or too cold, and you also need to use a watertight container and feed them correctly. Once you have learned how to care for them, you can purchase red worms for composting online.

More Gardening Tips:

Natural Weed Control for the Organic Gardener

How to Extend Your Gardening Season

8 Ways to Prepare Your Garden for Winter

Preparing Our Raised Beds for Spring Planting

What We Learned By Testing Our Garden Soil

The post Making and Using Compost for Your Garden appeared first on The Prairie Homestead.

from Gardening https://www.theprairiehomestead.com/2020/06/making-and-using-compost.html via http://www.rssmix.com/

0 notes

todaynewsstories · 6 years

Text

Growing up poor, fighting naysayers and injustices: BooksActually’s Kenny Leck goes On the Record

SINGAPORE: Kenny Leck looks nothing like a conventional businessman but in his field he is considered a formidable force. In an era where many major bookstores have closed down, his independent bookstore BooksActually has survived and is going strong after 13 years.

When I arrive there, he is behind a stack of books next to the cashier. He wears a nondescript T-shirt and glasses. The only thing that is easily visible from afar is his spiky black hair.

It’s a weekday and only a handful of people are browsing the rows of books that stretch from floor to ceiling at BooksActually at Yong Siak Street in Tiong Bahru.

We move into a backroom to talk. The 40-year-old answers questions with aplomb, but it feels as if I’m speaking with someone who is more a booklover than a businessman.

However, to survive in this business, you “necessarily have to be both”, he concedes.

To listen to the full interview, click here.

The business turned a modest profit of S$80,000 last year. For a single bookstore, “that’s actually quite ok”, he says. To a great extent, the figure is modest because he has been pumping more money into boosting the bookstore’s publishing arm, Math Paper Press, through which he often publishes local work that may not always make money, but that he considers important to “put out there”.

“When someone sends you a manuscript, whether it’s fiction, non-fiction, or a children’s book, they are trying to tell a story. Especially if it is a Singaporean who has submitted the manuscript to you, they’re trying to tell you a particular narrative of their own. And that narrative is as important as us winning an Olympic gold medal. Because that’s part of who we are, that’s part of our history.”

Investing in publishing has slowed down his progress towards buying a permanent retail property for the bookstore.

While he and his co-founder have been making the business work entirely on their own dime so far, they recently started a fundraising effort to rope in investors to help them do this.

“It’s more sustainable than paying rent and we hope we can do this through this crowdfunding effort.”

Over the last 13 years, they have moved three times, each time due to an increase in rent but for the last seven years, they’ve managed to establish some stability in Tiong Bahru.

The current rent is about S$10,000 a month but he’s not complaining.

“If you’re a good business owner, regardless of what the rent is, low or high, (if) you know that the location works for you and the numbers are proving right, you’ll just stay. So for now, it’s fine. But in the future, we don’t know what’s going to happen and who wants to be a sucker to any landlord who’s going to increase your rent by 50 to a 100 per cent?”

While he bemoans high rents, he doesn’t believe, as some businessmen do, that the authorities should intervene to control them.

“That’s just how the free market economy works. If you expect the landlords to reduce rent or if you ask the Government to intervene to reduce retail rents, you’re just being lazy and asking to be spoon-fed. We have to remember that it’s not free money. Rental subsidies will have to come from taxpayers.

“Business people should just accept this is the way it is, crunch your numbers well and do more to make your business successful. That’s what we have been trying to do. But if the price is too high, then you have to move. That’s just how the economy is. But we also want to explore other options such as having our own property.”

I remark that his public fundraising effort for this could be construed as “asking to be spoon-fed”.

He disagrees.

“We are aware that nobody owes us a living. It’s your private money. If you decide to help or invest, then do it. If you decide not to help, it’s fine too,” he says decisively.

We talk more about the numbers and his strategy to convince people to help later but to understand Mr Leck’s motivations it’s necessary to take a step back.

Kenny Leck, owner of BooksActually has also started a publishing arm, Math Paper Press.

WOULD HE AMOUNT TO NOTHING?

He came from a low-income family. His father was a taxi-driver and his mother a housewife. They both recognised the importance of reading.

“My mum was a typical parent who read a lot of self-help books about parenting. While she encouraged me to spend a lot of time in the library, she was also never stingy when it came to buying books for me.”

He attributes his desire to own books instead of simply borrowing them from the library, to a “covetous” instinct that he believes many book lovers possess.

“My mother would never say no. She would crunch her own numbers and figure out how she can transfer money from her household expenses to buy me books. I remember in school when there was an opportunity to buy several sets of encyclopedias, she bought them for me on a three-year instalment plan.”

He dropped out of an accountancy and taxation diploma course in a local polytechnic just two semesters before graduation and went to work at Borders before co-founding BooksActually in 2005.

He picked the polytechnic course for a very specific reason.

“My dad fell very ill when I was 17 so the family needed me to come up with a solid income after National Service (NS). I chose all the business-related courses, and I ended up with Accounting and Taxation. It was a very clear route. If you’re there, after NS you can just go on to do your accounting papers, and eventually you can become a chartered accountant which pays really well.”

But things changed. His father became better and landed a well-paying job at a church. This helped seal his decision to turn his back on school to pursue his dreams.

His polytechnic course manager at the time actually told him he would amount to nothing. His memories of this are still very vivid.

“I remember this person, but I understand why she said it. It was the context of that time. I think many people didn’t believe that you could succeed without paper qualifications. I was actually doing well in school. I was probably one of the top 10 students and I enjoyed studying things like taxation. But I also knew it’s not something I wanted to do for the rest of my life.”

His parents seemed to understand his decision.

“I told my dad I wanted to quit, and broke down the number of years that would be saved if I were to quit immediately, and he told me to go ahead. That’s what my parents have given to me. Since I was a kid, they’ve always trusted me to make my own mistakes, and to own them to make decisions, whether good or bad.”

BOOKSTORES HAVE ONLY THEMSELVES TO BLAME

Working at major bookstores such as Borders and Tower Books taught him what not to do.

He has said in previous interviews that the mistake many of these stores made was to sell non-book merchandise such as stationery, movie posters, gadgets and even snacks.

He admits now that he was guilty of this too, albeit to a much more limited extent today.

“Booksellers are guilty. All of us are guilty. There were phases of this bookstore when we brought in non-book products because they brought in the money. As we went on, we realised that we are a bookstore, so why are we selling all these things? If we’re a bookstore, let’s work harder at selling books.”

His focus is on displaying and marketing the books well and to that end, he sets up pop-up stores around the island. He believes that consumers should not be blamed for losing interest in reading or in physical books.

“The bookstores that haven’t made it have only themselves to blame. I’m in the business so I know. Sometimes, they receive stock and they don’t display it. They’ll leave it somewhere in a box. Three months later, they’ll tell you that the books don’t sell. So who is to blame? Is it the consumer, or is it the bookstore manager that managed the outlet? Or is it the top not managing the business well enough to ensure that when the books come in, they get processed and displayed?

“And not just displayed in terms of shoving it in, but making a nice visual display, and doing enough marketing and branding.”

“The bookstores that haven’t made it have only themselves to blame. Sometimes, they receive stock and they don’t display it. They’ll leave it somewhere in a box. Three months later, they’ll tell you that the books don’t sell,” says Kenny Leck of BooksActually. (Photo: Facebook / BooksActually)

FEAR AND ANXIETY

He set up his first bookstore in Telok Ayer Street with less than S$25,000.

“We borrowed $20,000 from my co-founder’s mom. We had maybe S$1,000 in our bank accounts. I borrowed S$700 from my dad. I remember because my dad had to take the loan from a fellow church member, and I had to pay it back within the month, so the number was very clear-cut.

“We picked up quite a bit of contractor skills. We actually made our display tables from discarded wood mounted on Ikea shelving units. We did quite a fair bit of painting ourselves. A lot of our marketing materials were made in-house. The do-it-yourself philosophy became more pronounced as the years went by. The current wooden wine crates that you see in the bookstore today were all mounted and put together by us. We sourced the wine crates, planned the layout, and then fitted it into the walls.”

When they first started out, there would be days when there would be no sales whatsoever.

He remembers the fear and anxiety he felt then.

“I think for any retailer, bookstore or otherwise, that’s the scariest thing that could ever happen. I remember that happening a few times in that first year. One day I fell ill, so I decided to take a break. The second day, I was actually feeling okay, but I was feeling so demoralised that I decided to stay at home another day. Then another. On the fourth morning, I woke up and I decided I shouldn’t do that, no matter if there are sales or not. I should just suck it up, open it up because you never know what’s going to happen.”

He calls that period a turning point.

“If I was serious about running the business and if there’s zero sales, it means that I’ve to do something about it whether it is organising an event, doing more marketing, doing more branding, get people in and get the sales.”

He was to face even more challenges later though.

He sold a 3-room HDB flat that his mother left him when she died and with the S$200,000 he made from it, he set up a second bookstore at Club Street which failed.

“I miscalculated. The space there was huge and we had to buy stocks from scratch. We had to buy a lot to fill up that huge space that we had. And the money burned faster than you could ever think.”

They had to close it eventually, but thankfully have managed to continue sustaining at least one store till today.

WHY INVEST IN A BOOKSTORE?

I ask how his fundraising efforts to purchase a commercial retail property for the bookstore are going.

The BooksActually Shophouse Fund has only made S$20,000 to date. They’ll need much more for a downpayment.

“An ideal location in Jalan Besar where it’s got a good vibe and slightly, but not totally gentrified, in total, will set us back about S$5 million. For a not-so-ideal location, but a location that we still like, it’ll be about S$2 million.”

He is considering the Balestier area.

I ask him what his proposition to donors is. Why should people contribute to this fund?

“I guess it’s about possibilities. Over time, we have connected with a lot of people, formed relationships and we have discovered simple things. For example, just two months ago, a customer who used to visit us at our previous location came back from the UK after completing her studies and she told us that she’s so happy to see us still around, because now she can show her kid what the bookstore meant to her when she was still studying in Singapore.”

I remark that it all sounds merely sentimental. What’s the business rationale?

“There’s no business rationale. There’s only that very intangible part of it. Everybody’s always asking where are our roots? Where is our commonality in this country, right? If they like to ask that but they tell you that actually we have no roots in this country because everything is changing so fast and places are disappearing, they are obviously not looking hard enough or not investing in it.

“Maybe someone down the road that you might be married to, or your kid might end up being a writer, might end up being a musician, might end up being an artist who we end up supporting. When you invest in us, it comes back around to you.”

But it seems as if he hasn’t managed to convince many people with that argument.

He ascribes the dismal contributions to a lack of publicity for the fundraising efforts and intends to ramp them up progressively.

A book launch at BooksActually. (Photo: Facebook / BooksActually)

STANDING FOR SOMETHING

But he reveals that “quite a handful” of private investors have actually offered to contribute, but once they realised what he stood for, they retreated.

“Bookstores tend to have a certain amount of character, and the character here is derived heavily from me – the person running it. For example, I am against discrimination and injustice, so a few years ago when the National Library Board pulled some books from their shelves because they highlighted different types of families including same-sex parents, we took a stand. We went to Amazon and bought all the 300-odd copies of And Tango Makes Three left in stock and sold them at our bookstore.

“We stand up against anything that discriminates against another person but some of our potential investors with deep pockets are of a certain social standing, and they are not comfortable aligning themselves with such causes.”

He clearly would rather reject the money than relinquish his ideals.

For now, he concedes that his modest profits will not get them far in terms of acquiring property, but he is determined to soldier on.

His ultimate goal is to have one large bookstore modeled after The Strand Bookstore in New York City.

In other respects, he is happy to continue living humbly.

“I currently only draw an allowance that covers food and transport, and I rent an apartment near the bookstore which doubles up as our publishing office, and storage area for our book stocks, plus bookstore supplies.

“I don’t take any holidays. For the first nine years of the bookstore’s existence, I did not travel because that was an unnecessary expense. When I had the chance to go to Bangkok after being invited to be a speaker in 2015 for the Bangkok Literary Festival they paid for all my expenses.”

Considering that at this time, he can’t afford to expand or buy his own retail property, clearly the bookselling business, on the scale he does it, has its limitations.

I ask if wealth is even a goal of his.

“I want to achieve wealth but I want to achieve wealth that enables me or the bookstore to help those who need it most because I’ve experienced what it’s like to grow up in a low-income family. I’ve seen how my folks struggled to make ends meet and not deprive their two kids of basic material comforts.

“The lowest point was when my father fell ill, nearly died, and with the loss of the sole-breadwinner in the family, we were suddenly at a loss. I was 17 that year doing my ‘O’ levels. We were either very, very lucky or blessed or both. His major hospital bills were close to 80 per cent subsidised by the government based on our income level, and for the rest, our church stepped in. That kind of support meant that my mother could ease her way into a job.”

Experiencing this “lack of wealth” has put him on a path to be as self-sufficient as possible but it has also ingrained in him a deep belief that any wealth gained must be used to help another person in need.

In his business, he classifies budding writers as “those in need”.

Through the publishing arm, Math Paper Press, he goes out of his way to help them in spite of the fact that some of the work lacks quality.

“There’s definitely a quality deficit. Over the years, it has of course improved by leaps and bounds, especially in the last decade. But we’re always going to have a quality deficit because there’s not enough being pushed out. How are you going to reach higher standards when you only have three or four serious publishers, compared to a city like London where they have many more. They also have a longer history than us.

“But we already have some really good work too that gets ignored because sometimes local publishers don’t push it hard enough. We have to do a better job.”

In the meantime, he sees it as his responsibility to give all writers a “good debut”.

He contributes to society in other ways by sponsoring books for community reading programmes for children from low-income families. Recently, he also contributed several thousand dollars to helping pay rent for a shelter for transgender individuals.

Kenny Leck is regularly seen at book fairs and events, a necessary part of his bookstore’s outreach efforts. (Photo: Facebook / BooksActually)

STAYING RELEVANT

As we turn to talking business again, he concedes that in some quarters it’s believed that physical books will become passé no matter how well they are marketed.

“I think the covetous side of book lovers – the fact that we are tactile beings – will ensure there’ll be a market for books. But I also know that there are questions about how environmentally-friendly all this is.”

I point out that e-books have a carbon footprint too, but ask him to justify why he continues his business in spite of his concerns.

He thinks the trade-offs are worth it.

“With books, we push knowledge and insight. All of us have been impacted by one or a handful of books. I think that’s where the value is. You are consuming resources, but we are producing books for pushing conversations, for keeping narratives, for pushing the envelope. Using paper to produce a book is much more valuable than using the same resources to produce a memo-pad.”

Some suggest that in a country with very good public libraries, buying books may in fact be wasteful too.

But he insists that book lovers’ covetous instincts that he alluded to earlier can make bookselling a viable business long into the future.

In fact, he welcomes competition.

“If we want to become a nation of readers, you need to have more bookstores. People today would rather open a cupcake shop than a bookshop, but they don’t know how to crunch numbers. They’ll always tell you that there’s a great number of people who will eat cupcakes, but soon many of these businesses will fold. I believe if they crunch the numbers right and did the right marketing and publicity, they’ll see bookselling can be viable.”

Competition, he believes, will also keep him and his team from becoming complacent.

His advice to budding business owners is simple.

“Don’t go in with the mindset of trying it for just two to three years and falling back on something else you’re more familiar with. If you go in with that mindset, you’re setting yourself up for an easy failure. If you’re faced with a life-and-death situation, you will think of more ways to stay alive, right? In business it’s the same thing, if you are presented with one problem, there can be multiple solutions. But if you go in with that mindset, you won’t even be able to see these solutions. You’ll just give up.”

While running a sustainable business is clearly important to him, when asked what impact he’d like to ultimately make in the industry, his answer has very little to do with monetary concerns.

“I always say the best way to die is to be just sitting in a chair reading a book, and to suddenly just expire. But throughout my life, I remember the individuals who’ve left a huge mark on me, whether teachers, parents or friends. I think that’s the most valuable thing. In your toughest times, you look back and know that those individuals have propped you up, put you on their shoulders so you can walk better. Hopefully, I can be that support for others in my personal and business life.”

Source link

The post Growing up poor, fighting naysayers and injustices: BooksActually’s Kenny Leck goes On the Record appeared first on Today News Stories.

from WordPress https://ift.tt/2Pn9lRB via IFTTT

#IFTTT #WordPress

0 notes

clusterassets · 6 years

Text

New world news from Time: Vanilla Is Nearly as Expensive as Silver. That Spells Trouble for Madagascar

On a recent Saturday afternoon in Sahabevava village, on the east coast of Madagascar, 46-year-old vanilla farmer Lydia Soa brandished the latest in anti-theft tracking devices: a hand-carved wooden stamp studded with a series of small steel pins. She had recently gone through the vines of her small plantation, stamping thousands of green vanilla pods with her unique producer code MK021. In theory, thieves could still steal her crop, but her branded pods would reveal their perfidy at the local market. “Now I can sleep at night, and when I wake up, my vanilla will still be there,” she says, with a relieved grin.

These days, vanilla theft is a big business in Madagascar. That may seem like a distant problem, but its repercussions are likely to be felt at your favorite dessert parlor this summer. Climate change, crime and speculation mean the price of the fragrant spice has skyrocketed from $20 a kilo five years ago to $515 in June. Ice-cream makers are faced with the agonizing choice of raising prices, pulling vanilla ice cream from the shelves, or even—to the horror of many—replacing real vanilla with a synthetic version sourced from petroleum products.

An innovative new program, spearheaded by some of the world’s biggest vanilla buyers, is tackling the problem head on by reducing theft, educating farmers, and making crops more resilient to the ravages of climate change. The aim is to stabilize the price of vanilla so that farmers will keep growing, and companies will keep buying.

Evolutionarily speaking, vanilla should have died out long ago. Now farmed far from its native Mexico and the bees that evolved to fertilize it, vanilla orchids have to be pollinated by hand in a time-consuming process—the small white flowers bloom once a year, for one day only. Then it takes another nine months for the fruits to mature into pods, which then have to be cured for several more weeks in alternating baths of steam, sun and shade before they can be incorporated into your favorite vanilla ice cream.

A byword for boring, vanilla tends to be taken for granted. Yet without it cookies lose their zing, milk chocolate its fragrance, crème brûlée its flare and Calvin Klein’s Obsession its sweet, earthy base. And without vanilla, some 80,000 farmers in Madagascar, which supplies 80% of the world’s crop, would lose their livelihood.

In a stark warning of climate change to come, a pair of tropical cyclones wiped out much of 2017’s Madagascan crop, sending prices higher than $600 a kilo. But higher costs don’t necessarily benefit the small family farmers whose futures depend on the fickle fruit. At a dollar per bean in one of the poorest countries of the world, farmers have had to contend with vanilla thieves who snatch the just-before-ripe pods straight from the vines knowing that they will fetch a decent price even if green. To counter the theft, farmers harvest their own crops early, flooding the market with low quality beans that lack the intense flavor that only emerges just before the mid-July harvest. As a result, the quality plummets and so does the price. Farmers tear out their vines in frustration, then scarcity pushes the price up again, creating a vicious cycle of vanilla boom and bust.

Read more: Vanilla shortage could lead to ice-cream price spike

In terms of cost, vanilla is easily the most volatile spice on the planet, says Gilbert Ghostine, CEO of Firmenich, a Swiss fragrance and flavor house that buys around 300 tons of vanilla a year—more than a tenth of the global supply. That volatility is putting vanilla’s very future at risk. “When the price is at $20, you have lots of farmers who say, ‘I’m not making money out of this. I’m walking away.’ And when it’s at $600, you have lots of companies saying, ‘I don’t want to use natural vanilla anymore because I can’t make money.’” The last time the price of vanilla spiked, to $400 a kilo in 2003, nearly 30% of buyers turned to vanilla substitutes and synthetic flavoring, says Dominique Roques, Firmenich’s vice president for natural flavors. The market for real vanilla eventually recovered, but continued fluctuations are making food companies wary. It’s not easy to reformulate recipes, and changing labels is expensive.

Masy Andriantsoa/Livelihoods FundsThe price of vanilla was $515 per kilogram on June 1 2018. Silver was priced at $527 per kilogram.

All but the most die-hard vanilla ice cream aficionados would have a hard time telling the difference between real vanilla and artificial flavoring, at least until they turn the container around and start reading the ingredients. That just may be the lifeline for Madagascar’s farmers. Consumers are increasingly demanding natural products in their food, says Roques, and ‘vanillic aldehyde’ doesn’t necessarily sit well with someone about to pay eight dollars for a pint of vanilla caramel swirl.

Which is why French food purveyor Danone, French utilities company Veolia, Firmenich and Mars Inc. are investing $10 million into the Livelihoods Fund for Family Farming, an mpact investment fund that will, among other things, stabilize a crop that most people don’t even think about. It’s part of an emerging trend among food companies to streamline their supply chain, knowing the importance of being able to tell consumers that the ingredients in their products are not only natural and pronounceable, but also that no humans were harmed in the process of procuring them.

Read more: Hershey makes a big change to chocolate recipe

“It is absolutely critical that our supply chains are sustainable,” says Victoria B. Mars, a member of the Board of Directors for Mars, Inc., and a fourth generation member of the Mars family. “If we don’t have the raw materials, we can’t make our products. If our farmers are not able to make a decent living, we won’t have the raw materials we need.”

In Madagascar, the Livelihoods Fund has partnered with local NGO Fanamby on a $2 million project to provide farmers with vanilla seedlings and teach them sustainable practices that avoid the carbon-producing, erosion-inducing slash and burn methods of traditional agriculture. At the same time they are dealing with the theft problem by helping farmers organize neighborhood vanilla watch programs and supplying them with the coded stamps. When there is a theft, Fanamby now goes to the authorities to press a complaint so that farmers in remote areas don’t have to leave their crops in the middle of harvest season.

Meanwhile, the three food and flavor companies have signed a contract agreeing to buy the vanilla directly from the 1,000 or so farmers in the cooperative, rather than through the middlemen who can take up to a 60% cut for themselves. In return, the farmers have committed to sell only to the investors for the next 10 years, at a 2-4% premium over market price.

Read more: Giulio Di Sturco goes inside Madagascar’s cocoa war

It isn’t just about corporate social responsibility, says Ghostine, though that does play a part. It’s self-preservation. As the world’s second largest flavors and fragrance company, Firmenich supplies vanilla extracts to leading brands, such as Guerlain (Madagascan vanilla is the cornerstone of its Shalimar perfume), Häagen-Dazs and Mars, which uses vanilla not just in milk chocolate, but in the caramel strip on a Twix bar. Though Firmenich also supplies synthetic and natural vanillin flavors derived from clove, cinnamon and wood, real vanilla is a luxury that needs to be preserved at the source, says Ghostine. “We are making sure that the crops are harvested properly. We are increasing the yield. We are ensuring that communities still have a passion for investing in these crops and that their children are not going to the cities just to find jobs.”

Vanilla isn’t the only product that is getting the Livelihoods treatment. The fund is looking at other crops too, from cocoa to coconut, rice, palm oil and shea butter. Each of those commodities has a complex and, at times, sinister supply chain that could benefit from greater transparency and streamlining, revolutionizing the industry in the process, says Livelihoods Ventures president and co-founder Bernard Giraud. Vanilla, he says, is the Mount Everest of commodities. “If we can do it with vanilla, we can do it with anything.”

New vanilla vines take three years to mature, so it will be a while yet before the Livelihoods program, now in its second year, bears fruit. In the meantime, Soa is plotting ever more dire punishments for anyone who does attempt to steal her current crop. At the moment vanilla thieves face 3-4 years in prison. As far as she is concerned, that’s not enough. She wants a life sentence. “You invest all your life in growing the vanilla. Stealing it is the same thing as killing someone.”

June 13, 2018 at 03:13PM ClusterAssets Inc., https://ClusterAssets.wordpress.com

#Time #world #news #ClusterAssets #ClusterAsset #Cluster Asset Inc.#ClusterAssets Inc.

0 notes

harryussery09557-blog · 6 years

Text

Building Memcached On Windows.

Discover more natural home remedy for impotence that operate in hrs with no medications as well as no embarrassing products at our Normally Heal Erectile Dysfunction Site. The name of a policy is the worth of the name criterion in the rule's affirmation in a BUILD documents; the name of a data is its pathname about the directory site having the BUILD data. The issue might have been averted by making sure that the actual dependency from a to c presented in Step 2 was correctly proclaimed in the BUILD data. An usual dependence enables streamlining logic on uncovering libfoo itself (or building it from resource). So allow's go on and develop the reliances we need to get our 32bit memcached variation up and running! BUiLD takes you past your level, giving you the possibility to explore concerns of social venture, sustainability and social justice. Best Buy members will get 15% off ink as well as toner orders - just enter your Finest Buy member ID at checkout. . For those of you taking into consideration the 'traders' route I.e. designers wanting to make a profit as apposed to self develop labour of love, certainly significant cost savings could be attained if this choice is taken care of correctly, effective commercial administration is the trick. Rerun-if-changed=COURSE is a course to a documents or directory site which indicates that the construct script must be re-run if it changes (discovered by a more-recent last-modified timestamp on the data). This collection provides everything you need to dock your system and play in TV nowy targ info mode if you 'd like to utilize your Nintendo Switch with several TVs in the home. Typically, new houses will have much more contemporary eas, better insulation and also could be a lot more power reliable. Far frequently individuals wind up entering to a look for a sale thing just to wind up bring out a complete price one instead, or too. Difficult de louper Fabien, le barman qui a élaboré une carte de cocktails maison spécialement pour le Wood et aux noms peu communs: Clint East, Holly, Sher, Bolly, Rachel et le Wood Made" vos envies, nos idées ". Autre factor fort, on aime les alcôves bien pensées put passer une soirée plus intime nowy targ info ou, au contraire, les grandes tables et canapés mœlleux put passer la nuit avec tous ses potes. You and 9 of your closest buddies quietly own your shopping carts around in a long, mystifying conga line without ever actually buying anything. Sur la place Thorigny, depuis quelques semaines, est venu se nicher le Wood, une cabane proclaim en bois. Rerun-if-changed=PATH is a path to a data or directory site which shows that the develop manuscript should be re-run if it alters (found by a more-recent last-modified timestamp on the documents). If you wish to utilize your Nintendo Switch with several TVs in your home, this collection offers whatever you should dock your system and play in TELEVISION mode. Commonly, new homes will have a lot more contemporary benefits, much better insulation as well as can be much more energy reliable. Much frequently people end up going in to a shop for a sale item just to wind up bring out a complete price one rather, or too. To join the Buy Nothing Job, where you could give easily, share artistically and also request for anything you want to get for Nowy Targ Info free or borrow. You could get with Foster Homes and Grownup Family members Residences and also do the purchasing them. Actuellement il est le meilleur dans le domaine du recover en raid mais ses types de recover straight ne sont pas aussi puissant que ceux du clerc. Nonetheless, if you comprehend the difference in between different sorts of baby strollers, you can conveniently discover which one could benefit you based upon your demands. Dépôt de ressources Nv. 3 (put accueillir les ressources nécessaires à la recherche des Toutatis). You can open the account with simply? 1, however similar to all other Aid to Get ISAs, you can put up to? 1,200 in in the first month. A number of the globe's leading brand names make use of shop to include online purchasing to their primary LINK. Would not be a wonderful place to research or anticipate to rest as well as talk with a nowy targ info group during peak hours but I would certainly return if I was in the area for their adorable as well as scrumptious beverages! Never part with Money or deposit till you make certain the property is devoid of problem as well as you have actually done the Investigation as well as its just when your prepared to do the study of the land that you pay a 10% deposit to secure the place up until the property surveyor is with before the remainder is being transfered to you This will certainly create a fixed apply for each file situated in your source folder. . Store focused on offering motorbikes and/or related devices, garments, parts, repair and rental services. Choose ashop name for a dedicated on the internet purchasing address that is short, simple to remember as well as a powerful advertising and marketing device. Like all other Assistance to Buy ISAs presently on the marketplace, this is a variable price, indicating you must monitor it in case it drops. On-campus tasks comprise the core (compulsory) element of your BUiLD program and also will prepare Goo.Gl you to seek and also embark on elective opportunities. They likewise have baked products as well as morning meal products that I would not be averse to attempt in the future. Task monitoring is usually an added solution provided by your home builder, property surveyor or designer.

0 notes

mobileautorepairpros · 6 years

Text

Over The Edge: Hippie Bus

Recently our Zack Maskell literally stumbled across a family traveling the country in a very artistic “mobile home”. Call it a tiny house, an RV, or a bus… that’s on top of a bus, it truly is a horse…or a house…of a different color. So let’s go over the edge with Zach… and enjoy the simple life… living as a highway nomad.

ZACH MASKELL: If a Chevrolet and a Volkswagen had a baby… would it grow up to look like this? It’s a 1953 Chevy school bus… with a 1969 VW Bus on top of it… which allows for more head room… and a bed.

“’Creative talent is only achieved when passion is coupled with hard work’ That’s one of my favorite artists once told me, I happen to be wearing his shirt right now… Keegan Sweeny. I think he would definitely agree that this family is living up to that motto.”

JEANNETTE APPLAUSO: “The kids go ‘Mommy, Mommy, look, look. Look at this big bus… let’s go talk to these people.”

LEROY HERR: “It’s here for you to just smile at and enjoy. It’s actually here for you”

ZACH MASKELL: Dubbed the “Dragonfly Bus” by a trucker in Nebraska. He says it drags up hills, but flies down them. Artist, Heather Platon and husband, LeRoy Herr, who’s a mechanic by trade travel with their two kids and dog, Moonshine. They use it to spread respect, freedom, and of course…love.

HEATHER PLATEN: “We live full time in the bus. It’s a tiny home and mobile pop up art gallery. We invite people inside to check out the bus we want to talk about sustainable living what it’s like to be on the road, how it is to live in a tiny house. We try to bring people together… lighten the mood and the country make people smile.”

ZACH MASKELL: Staying off the grid for six years, building and living in this bus the last two, they stay at national parks sometimes two weeks at a time.

LEROY HERR/ HEATHER PLATEN: “40 hours a week making somebody else’s money doesn’t really make a lot of sense to me.”

ZACH MASKELL: The couple stresses to students in art classes across the U.S. that a 30-year home mortgage isn’t for everyone. For them, spending more time with their kids and being forced to go outside is far more rewarding.

LEROY HERR: $100 to me, in the position that I’ve put myself in, is a lot.

ZACH MASKELL: They don’t just buy something new when it breaks. If it can be fixed, they fix it.

LEROY HERR: “So this is a 40-gallon water cistern. And then I use this pump here to pump the tank, to pump pressure up in the tank to get me water.”

ZACH MASKELL: Using solar panels to power the refrigerator and lights, along with resources from the woods… they remain mostly self-sufficient.

LEROY HERR: “This is where I put my wood in here. The wood fire cook stove.. is awesome.”

ZACH MASKELL: So it was only natural that a vehicle this unique ventured to our local cars and coffee in Maryland…to see and feel the vibes this bus spreads at Hunt Valley Horsepower.

ERIC LEE: “I think it’s cool. It reminds me of Woodstock.”

TARA WHITLOW: “Just you looking at this and you asking yourself what’s in there, you being curious yourself, you’re kind of opening your mindset towards art.”

ZACH MASKELL: Activating the higher consciousness. Your imagination and emotions… everything is tied together. So, art could be the accelerant. To get the wheels turning upstairs… they allow anyone… to draw anything… anywhere on the bus. Why? because you can’t confine creativity.

HEATHER PLATEN: Janis Joplin, somebody in Alexandria, he looked at me and said, please put Janis Joplin on your bus. So I started on her right away. And then Bruce Lee, another suggestion. I could not go to one town without people demanding, angrily, that I put Jerry on the bus.”

HEATHER PLATEN: This is the first piece that ever went on the bus. This was done by somebody else in Austin, Texas.

ZACH MASKELL: Should you meet the Dragonfly bus, get more artistic than me, and who knows… how many states or people it will spread to… and positively impact.

from MotorWeek Entries http://ift.tt/2zvA4Ua via IFTTT

#IFTTT #MotorWeek Entries

0 notes

mackenziehumpher-blog · 7 years

Text

The Perks Of Composite Doors Over Wooden Doors.

At some point the majority of people will check out an apartment just before they consider relocating. Nevertheless, there are lots of folks who carry out not know just what they need to be trying to find just before they relocate in to a house considering that there are no suggestions or courses that you can take relating to this. Add to underweight settings in center stocks (those in the Returns Home foundation). Tebter resources can easily offer an explanation for all your residence control requirements correct throughout Australia, starting adequately here along with your residence residential properties in Darwin and the covering areas. Therefore be careful to keep doors and also home windows closed on the side from the house exposed to the breeze. They had really desired to propose a long time yet feared Emma and their other little ones will certainly not prefer them to leave this home where they had actually been raised. To the person above which claimed to just cease feeding them ... I simply acquired a house that had actually been abandoned occasionally. I put my property up for sale in April, and also devoted the months before that marketing, packing, possessing garage sale, and so on This is a necessary factor of offering your property; letting every person understand that you have something that they wish to purchase. Their chosen homes within your house are under the bed, in http://beautiful-women-22.info/procedure-dathlete-dermagen-iq-avis-doit/ the fractures from the frame, below and in guide shelves, and so on We get homes in Houston and encompassing regions and pay for a reasonable money rate, quick. The even more buyers you draw in to your property, the more odds from marketing your house quickly. Renting out a house in Leeds city is actually certainly not an easy task as compared with other urban areas in the region. Attention, as well as the initial aspect you should do to offer your home fast your own self it in order to get the eye from somebody that could be taking into consideration buying your house as well as possesses the capacity to buy. The amount of bathrooms ought to virtually if you have a house that has great deals from room identical the variety of areas. The icicle christmas time flower lightings could additionally be put in various other places around your home. A really good market price on your home will certainly capture attention from realty shoppers. Our experts possess an uninhabited lot of i believe 50sqm. can you simply aid me determine the amount of this is going to cost for a home residence. When folks involve view your house make certain you discover delighted and unwinded. Our team do not possess toads in the backyard here as our experts are too much from water yet I still really want a toad house. The fight over the documentations revolves around Function Rapid as well as Fuming," a government police plan meant to track items offered in Arizona that were suspected from being moved to Mexico for usage by vicious medication cartels. New model vehicles and also elaborate outdoor furniture are actually an aim at, however they additionally signify to a crook that this residence may consist of other items worth taking. As with the cuneate ark type hen home over, being made from wood, cleansing is actually a guaranteed concern, and also the principal downside this has compared with the Eglu. Residing in one's house needs an excellent quantity from hard work that enters into spoiling and sustaining your home every so often. The deep projection from the 2nd tale gave the house such a reflective look, that you can certainly not pass it without the concept that it possessed secrets to keep, and also a memorable background to moralize after.

0 notes

jingphotography · 7 years

Text

Why we travel can admittedly be for reasons of self-gratification – to get off from work to recharge, to tick off something from your bucket list, to try the local food, to see unique places, to get your dose of adrenaline rush, to scout for street art (did this in Georgetown, Penang), to take cool pictures.

My recent travel to Siem Reap, Cambodia has made me realize that there is nothing wrong with having all these selfish intentions. We all have different passions which influence the way we travel and why we travel. But it doesn’t have to be just that. Traveling with a conscious effort to make a positive impact to the place and people you’re visiting can put a whole new meaning to our travel experience.

I’m sharing with you seven ways on how you can leave a positive impact while visiting Siem Reap. Simply put, here are different ways on how to travel Siem Reap with a heart.

1. Watch Phare Cambodian Circus

All performers at the Phare Cambodian Circus are beneficiaries of free professional arts education at the Phare Ponleu Selpak (PPSA). PPSA helps street children, orphans and the underprivileged Cambodian youth improve their lives through arts. Proceeds of the tickets will help sustain the school’s operations and support the performers.

Phare, the Cambodian Circus is unique in that it combines theater, circus arts, music and dancing in one show while showcasing Cambodian stories. I watched their “Same Same But Different” and found the stunts as breathtaking. The performers are entertaining and funny (typical Asian humor, to which I can very much relate to, of course). They look happy with what they’re doing and it just shows in their energy while performing.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

2. Learn how to paint at the Small Art School

Small Art School is near the touristy area along Siem Reap River but it’s tucked away from the dense hotels and restaurants. Even the place was unknown to my tuk-tuk driver and he actually had to use his Google Map to locate the school.

I was greeted by two large dogs at their gate upon arrival. Being someone who find it hard to be friends with dogs, I hesitantly entered until I was ushered in with an assuring smile by Ms. Yuko. Going in, my eyes wandered with awe at the art works displayed in every corner of the room. I was inspired even more so learning that all the paintings and drawings are products of the school’s young Khmer students.

Small Art School is founded by Ms. Tomoko Kasahara, a Japanese art teacher. The school was built by Tomoko out of her own pocket to teach free art lessons to young Cambodians who are willing to learn art but could not afford it.

I took a one and a half hour painting class with Small Art School, which I booked through Visit.org. Before that, the last time I held a paint brush for art’s sake was during my elementary days. My mind actually went blank when Ms. Yuko asked me what I would like to paint. Thankfully, I was guided by young Khmer artists and teachers, Sokpheak Doung and Hay Chhoem. My seatmate during the painting session was a Japanese child accompanied by her parents. That moment seated beside the small child, both of us expressing ourselves with strokes of the paintbrush was a mixture of both inspiration and pressure. I was encouraging myself, ”If a child can do it, so can I”. Haha!

Profit from the painting class will help support young local artists and provide children with access to free arts education. At first I thought I was the one helping them by booking their painting class. However, in the end it was me who had been enriched a lot. I really appreciate the efforts of the teachers and the founder of Small Art School for selflessly helping develop the art skills of the Cambodian youth.

That’s my young art teacher, Sokpheak and my…uhm…masterpiece (Photo from Small Art School)

3. Dine at Sister Srey Café

I went to Sister Srey Café because I needed a shot of caffeine and access to the internet. I later found out that this establishment supports Khmer students and the local community. They train their staff in hospitality management and English language. They send their degradable solid wastes to Green Gecko Farm for composting and they select suppliers that are also offering support to the community.

Sister Srey Café is located along the Siem Reap River, one block away from the Old Market.

4. Buy local products

If you’re looking for souvenirs or just in the mood for shopping, Siem Reap has plenty of options that offer locally-made products.

Old Market or Psar Chas

The Old Market, also known as Psar Chas is the most convenient place to shop as it’s in the heart of Siem Reap’s commercial area. It sells everything from fruits, vegetables, seafood, meat, handicrafts, T-shirts, shoes, bags and other souvenir items. Be cautious not to buy imported items. The most important thing is to think carefully what souvenirs you want to take home. Ask yourself again and again whether you really need that item. Buy only what you need. Avoid buying things that will just end up occupying space in your cabinets without use.

Angkor Night Market

The Angkor Night Market is another shopping area which is looks a little more sophisticated than the Old Market. it is composed of stalls selling clothing, handicrafts, art works and other souvenir items made by local communities and NGOs.

Artisan’s Angkor

Artisan’s Angkor is a social enterprise seeking to promote traditional Khmer arts and handicrafts while providing training and employment to the local people. I went to their workshop on Stung Thmey Street, a few minutes walk from the Old Market. The workshop is open to the public, hence, you can watch the artisans transform wood, stone and metals into works of art. They offer a free ride to their Silk Farm, about 20 minutes drive from Siem Reap center, but I opted to visit just the workshop.

Finished products of Artisan’s Angkor are displayed in their shop in the middle of the two workshop buildings.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

It was interesting to learn that the skilled workers of Artisan’s Angkor were the ones who restored some of the heads of gods and demons at the south gate of the picturesque entrance to Angkor Thom, as mandated by the government.

Restored heads at Angkor Thom entrance

60 Meter Road

This place was recommended to me by my guide from Green Era Travel. Sixty Meter Road is a 15 minute tuk tuk drive outside the Siem Reap center. It is where locals hang out in the late afternoon to evening, especially during weekends. Stalls for clothes, shoes, bags, toys, fruits and cooked food are lined up along two sides of the road. On the other lane parallel to the stalls, picnic mats and hammocks for hire are lined up, together with street food vendors. The other side of this lane also has a small funfair.

Unfortunately, I was a bit too early when I came. The stalls along the road were just starting to be set-up, while I need to come back to the SIem Reap town center at that time. I’d love to come back to this place and experience the Cambodian style of dining at the mats should I ever come back to Siem Reap again.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Psar Leu

The Old Market at the Siem Reap center is a convenient place to shop for something Cambodian, but admittedly, most of the shops here cater entirely for tourists. If you want to shop where locals shop or just observe what a real Cambodian market feels like, then Psar Leu is the best place to visit. Psar Leu is a large covered market located about three kilometers away from the Old Market. I hired a tuktuk from the Siem Reap center and the two way trip, including waiting time is 5 USD.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

5. Choose a responsible tour company

Hiring a local guide even for a day has the advantage of you discovering more about the local people, their culture, the history and even off the beaten places that are not in the guidebooks. It’s also a way of supporting the local people.

There are a vast number of companies in Siem Reap offering tours. That is why doing a little bit of research is called for if you really want to make sure that your money will go to a company that supports the community, doesn’t exploit animals and considers reducing their impacts to the environment. Websites and online reviews can sometimes look too good to be true but this can be a place to start with your homework.

I found a great company, Green Era Travel, where I booked tours for Angkor Wat Temples, Phnom Kulen Mountain and Kampung Phluk Village. Green Era Travel advocates responsible tourism by reminding their guests of the proper behavior and dress code when entering temples, minimizing air travels for Indochina tours, implementing proper disposal of trash and recommending local restaurants for trying out local foods.

Green Era Travel is also supporting local NGOs and charity organizations such as Kid’s Hope Foundation. Donations are used among others for supporting the school fees and supplies of underprivileged children, providing pumps for accessing water and developing local communities.

6. Stay in a homestay

Staying in a homestay will give you the opportunity to interact with the local people in a way you won’t experience staying in hotels. Interacting with a receptionist at a hotel is very different from interacting with a homestay host who offered their homes for you to stay as a guest.

For 5 nights, I stayed at Ratanak’d Residence. The house is located about 2 kilometers away from Siem Reap center where the other hotels, shops and restaurants are conveniently located. However, I did not regret staying that far from the town center.

The house where I stayed is built in traditional Cambodian style wooden structure. It is surrounded by trees and is quiet. I wake up to the sound of birds chirping. I got insights into local life which hotels simply can’t offer. Ratanak, my host, was very accommodating. Traveling solo, going back to the homestay at the end of the day gives me the comfort that is close to the feeling of being in my own home.

Apart from memories you’ll make with your hosts, staying in homestays is also a way of helping the locals earn income.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

7. Use local resources responsibly

Siem Reap receives over 2 million tourists a year, increasing the local population by two or three times. Imagine as a tourist how much water, electricity, fuel and other resources you are consuming during your entire visit to a foreign country. Multiply that with the number of other tourists who consumes the same resources as you do.

We can choose to be responsible tourists and make conscientious efforts to use water and electricity sparingly, to order only the amount of food you can consume and to prevent as such as possible the generation of plastic bag wastes and other solid wastes. For concrete other examples on how to travel green, I invite you to read my Hows and Why of Traveling Green.

Doesn’t it feel good visiting some place foreign and achieving your travel goals while at the same time leaving the place knowing that you left a positive impact to the community? Make every money you spend on travel count.

Like this post? Pin It! Share It!

How to Travel Siem Reap with a Heart Why we travel can admittedly be for reasons of self-gratification – to get off from work to recharge, to tick off something from your bucket list, to try the local food, to see unique places, to get your dose of adrenaline rush, to scout for street art (did this in…

0 notes

caustic-pixie · 7 years

Text

On Radicalization

I was talking with a friend about the tricky social splinter of finding out that acquaintances are one step away from enemies by way of how they handle their discomfort brought on by critique and confrontation.

There are many kinds of “work” we face in life. What I am focusing on here is a certain kind. I'll say Work, with a Capital W. Work, defined here as “reaching the threshold of uncomfortable, unknown-result, unmovable set of concepts and tasks that are not only expected of us, but have reached a culminating point of no-turning-back being -required- for us to change in a way that better integrates us into an immediate group – and that increases the health and decreases the toxicity of that group”.

The “group” is subjective, but intentionally close by. Maybe it's a job, a blood family, a chosen family, a music scene, friends, religion, whatever – maybe it has national/global levels – but the Work is tied directly in to immediate degrees of connection with others that are involved in one's daily/weekly life and activities.

- - -

Big chunks of the USA have a problem with a kind of toxic masculinity that has been progressing since after World War II, when families were forming and propagating in an age of ever-expanding technology and opportunity. Houses had been popping up in towns, and those houses and towns were ready-made for the auto industry – homes were in suburbs away from work, which was away from the stores, which was away from nature, which was away from schools. The idea of community became location-role specific, the nuclear family became an echo chamber of “Mine deserve the best – better than the rest”. Slowly, over decades and generations and cohorts, we put on blinders so we could better focus on looking forward – and the only time we looked in to other lanes was to check and make sure we had a far enough head-start. Buy more, better, bigger, faster – for you and your family – so you can -be- more, so you can -be- better, so you can -be- bigger, so you can -be- faster. Work long enough to take the money you've earned to leverage it with a bank to purchase things to give you and your kids the best shot at winning the chance to work long enough to take the money -

When we hear jeers about “every kid getting a medal for everything”, we see the true success of the above. Adults of all ages complain about a system that was set up not only by their own parents, but by their grandparents, and is now insidiously motivating in what they do themselves: Grown men and women want enough medals taken away so -their- kid's medal is special again, so -they- are special – again.

Again.

Again. As if there was a “before”. As if there was a first time, that they were special. Why can't they remember when they were special? What... was that thing, that used to feel so good? Do you remember?

Schools and sports slowly rolled over the country in to being the only refuge for kids, and soon there would be no refuge for older kids, for adults. Gender-restrictive, but still deep and supportive, relationships fell to the wayside for whole swaths of men. Women had their friendships demonized and devalued until or unless they could be commodified in some darkly competitive way.

What is that special feeling that one wants to reclaim again? Community. Belonging. Validation. Efficacy. Meaning.

Humans are social. We can't help it. If you, reader, has gone “Tch.” in your head – has gone “I'M antisocial. People are awful. I want to be away in the woods with my pets/art/music” - this post is not for you. Go read the first two related links on the top and come back here later. Seriously, I don't want you on this post, it's a waste of your time and mine. Go, go.

Humans are social. We can't help it. Biologically, it's what we do, it's in our coding, we -need- each other, each of us. It takes a lot of work and Work alike to make sure we all get those needs met. Loneliness is not only deadly, but it's almost viral – it weakens the mind's immunity to other mental illnesses: Isolation, paranoia, self-neglect, depression, anger, delusions. Too much time alone, and the brain will begin to construct its -own- world to compensate for the needs left unfulfilled – like a body living off its own fat reserves until it starts reaching the muscles and it needs to eat those too. We need to see that our existence positively effects the existences of those around us, we need to see that we are seen, we need to see that others see us seeing them. We need our actions to bee like they -matter-.

When we're punished for wanting to look to our sides because it might mean we're willing to fall behind to match pace with others in our cohort, when we're given so many medals and rewards that we can no longer trust the praise of others as a way to mark our progress or acknowledge our Work, when we're encouraged to only team up with others to accomplish one goal and then disperse -

when do we get to find a sustainable sense of meaning? Where do we get taught to do the Work to make it happen?

We're not encouraged to perform emotional labor – some humans (especially men, especially people in different power brackets) are discouraged from even learning how. We don't possess a language to think about building, let alone -maintaining-, long-term connections to those closest to us (mentally or physically).

Once you've hit a certain age, then, fully indoctrinated to the above: your only choice is forward-motion towards power. Power will mean you're far enough ahead that you are safe. Power will mean reaching the goal. Top score. Good grades. Medals. House. Car. Food. The best, fastest, most. It always has before.

Anyone who tries to connect with you must therefore be trying to take your power away. There's no motivation toward a group project here. The Work is obviously not real, because you never had to do any of it before, right? Your friends, family, coworkers will all inevitably betray you because -you would absolutely betray them-, and this knowledge churns around an ever deepening fear of self that becomes projected out into a fear of others so that neither fear is distinguishable from the other and they both harden in to something that feels like a Fact of Life.

That Fact of Life means that any deviation from running ahead must mean that someone is trying to run you off your road. Work is frivolous, menat for someone else to do, because you're already working -so- hard-. Critique is a confrontation. Emotional vulnerability is a manipulative trap. Invitation to engage is a demand on your time to waste it away from this important thing you're trying to do. Any questioning of behavior is an obvious attempt to -hurt you-.

Now imagine if you looked ahead and saw a group of people who Get It. Who live this Fact of Life so perfectly that they're reaching all the goals. They're powerful. They're not alone. They have attention, love, success; and it’s not even slowing them down or making them look weak. They figured it out. They lash out at the problem and people listen. They're winners.

Wouldn't you want it? Why wouldn't you want it? It's perfect. Everything you were brought up to believe was real, all along. You can be special again.

One's friend group from school, sports, childhood has been receding. The ones still present have begun to say that one has changed. One gets defensive – what's changed, what are these guys even talking about? One has always been this way. It's THEM that have changed. They can't see the obvious truth that their power is getting leeched away from them, and by association they're making everyone else give up that power too. Everyone's rushing to become weak and slow. Everyone's denying their destiny to go pursue the goal-grade-score-star. Why are they rejecting this? Why can't they see the truth?

Those other folks who have found their own groups that match up with their own lanes, those folks are spouting crazy talk. It's -One- who has always stayed the same... and that's actually true, from all angles. Those other folks are just finally having to acknowledge the behaviors and beliefs they could formally take for granted as being inherent/good or that they could at least sweep under the rug as just common/inevitable. None of them have ever learned the emotional skills to not only spot the red flags early enough to matter, and none of them have ever learned how to want to -act upon- those red flags even if they could see them in time. Loneliness has seeded and sprouted and seeps. So those blinders keep the eyes on the prize and these people who seem to be already achieving it. So this One person submits.

So they are special. Again. Community. Belonging. Validation. Efficacy. Meaning.

Again and again and again, the cure to loneliness is viral in its own right – this desperate, unnamed need to connect without any language or skills to do so; this self/other fear and goal-power-chasing that lays the bedrock for every other belief. The drive to be in anything but Last Place means joining any other group of people that will help you keep -any other group- in last so you never have to be. If the group gets too big to gather new members, it'll just splinter into smaller subgroups for the same goal.

The good feelings that should come with being special are impossible to feel, because that would create vulnerability. This specialness is only safe if it sneaks in like a feeling of -survival-. You are special because of your fear, because of your anger, because of how many enemies there are in front of you to unite those to the sides of you. There will always need to be an enemy to rail again, for there to be a special way to feel.

Who is good, and who is bad? One, or the other folks? Do you know which side of the fence this One fell over to? Surprise, it could be any, all, and either. It could start on one and end on the other. Are you listening? It's all a long-term lack of skills.

It's irrelevant from which ideology we spring from, but only in a detached sense, which is from wence I am writing this today. All of this results in violence, and all of that results in all of us being slowed down even further. People are dying for dreams that were not designed to remember them.

The answer to all things is rehabilitation and reintegration, witnessing, watchfulness, work, Work. One by one, one by the many, the many by one. The village raising the child, the Scotsman taking ownership of culture's complex and sometimes unflattering results. The healthy display of anger and hurt and sorrow, the strength and patience and self-preparation of holding space when we just don't want to.

No excusing, and, consistent acknowledgment of what-is. Context can coexist beside confrontation. Tolerance and acceptance do not negate boundaries and expectations, instead they work together to build towards progress.

#personal #philosophy #radicalization #racism #classism #sexism

0 notes

nottwopennies · 7 years

Text

It has been six months since starting this blog, and now feels like the ideal time to give you all an update and help remind myself of what we’ve already achieved and what we want to work towards in the months and years ahead.

It’s also time again to spend a little more, in hope of saving a lot later. I’m also really keen to lessen our impact on the planet some more and in the process become a smidgen more self-sufficient.

Food, Shopping & Waste .

I am working more hours than I’d like, to pay off our little loan. However, we have found ourselves with a few extra pennies each week. Rather than continue to cut our food budget to the absolute minimum, we have decided to take responsibility and have set ourselves a few guidelines for the food we will buy in future.

Our food should meet as many of the following points as possible:

be organic

be vegetarian (but we’re still eating eggs)

be fair-trade

be as locally produced as we can find

have minimal packaging, especially plastics

There’s one exception to buying local, as I’m not aware of any coffee plantations in Spain.

Giving up caffeine is something I’ll work towards, but not before my hours drop back down. It’s also a bit too cold for us to grow olives here, something that has become a favourite snack of ours.

Organic, fair-trade and local produce tend to be a little pricier than normal products found in supermarkets, but we’ll also be supporting local businesses, small shops, and also local producers when buying fresh stuff in the bi-weekly farmer’s market. Which seems like a good compromise.

We’ve already come to accept that going totally moneyless is not a reality for us, not just yet. We will of course continue to reduce our need for money as much as we can.

And of course, we’re hopeful that the majority of our vegetables and some of our fruit will be home-grown… eventually.

Also, we hope to reduce our weekly waste. Something that has already happened without much thought. 80-90% of our weekly rubbish is recyclable and another 5-10% is organic.

After last summer’s worm massacre, we’ve yet to set up a real composting system. This is something else we will address. Having today spent some money on a decent compost bin, both one for the kitchen and one for the terrace.

I’m hoping to get all those rubbish numbers as close to 0% as I can. Composting kitchen waste and using reusable bags not just for carrying our groceries but for rice, oats and anything else I can find bought from larger sacks. Thankfully most of the organic shops have options for buying these plus nuts, quinoa, couscous and more in this manner.

So, we’ll try to make some sacks of our own to avoid using the plastic (supposedly biodegradable) from the shops loose produce section. We’ve also paid a bit more than usual for truly biodegradable bin bags, made from corn starch[!?] or something similar.

We’ve not gone fully vegan, but are still largely vegetarian. We eat eggs and have the odd treat of some cheese. Once in a while we still eat some chicken too. (More about chickens/eggs in the garden section.)

I’m currently looking into healthier options for our cat, the food we buy her now is expensive and processed. I have found a supplement that can be added to meat. Sure, we’ll still be supporting the meat industry and all the problems that brings, but my cat is a part of the family and deserves a healthy diet.

Keeping Warm.

We’ve given up on the olive oil lamps, not great light sources and yet amazing little heaters. I’ll try to find some way to use the parts and might come back to them next winter. The heating is now off and will stay that way indefinitely.

We’re also using our current small increase in financial stability to invest in beeswax tea lights. I hadn’t really thought about the ones we were using before, it was only when the last batch we bought produced a very nasty smell that we decided (much like our food) to go as natural/organic as possible.

I’ve found some that are sold with the option of not having the aluminium cups/containers. I have actually been keeping all of the ones we’ve used with the idea of an art project or upcycling of some sort in future. So, I can reuse them again for now with the new candles. I should do the same with our other light-candles, but we will use what we have first.

Power.

We found out where our power comes from, a nice move on our power company. Utter transparency and honesty, but not such a pleasant surprise. The breakdown was more or less:

20% renewable (a good start)

25% coal (the horror!!!!)

25% nuclear (oh dear!!)

I still need to translate the remaining 30% which came from several different sources.

Well, finding alternatives to both save money and not use this wicked electricity has become an even bigger issue for me.

Thankfully we have unplugged the fridge-freezer and the only major energy we use is my computer for work. Having eventually failed at trying a tablet and a low-energy computer like the Raspberry Pi.

The other three big items is the washing machine, and my husband’s Xbox and TV. He is very much willing to take on this lifestyle change with the exception of one of his favourite games. I’ve asked him to play less, but have promised not to ask him to stop altogether.

Let’s see how it goes, sometimes he says he wants a new electric razor and this and that. Maybe it’s old habits or maybe he’s just thinking out loud and not entirely serious about getting these things.

Currently we are generating our own power from the wood burning oven and kettle that both use heat to make power, plus the old small solar panels and a some wind-up torches.

In the future I’d really like a small wind turbine, rather than a questionable (environmentally-friendly speaking) solar panel and perhaps more human-powered options.

I’ve decided to donate my Kindle to my father, once I’ve read all the books, as I know he is interested in getting one. I’ll ask that he sells/hands it on in future and so my concerns over its sustainability should have been solved.

Cleanliness.

I have been using soaps and shampoos again, and I did need a shave last month.

I had a Xmas treat of a haircut too. I kept the top long, and just had the sides shaved. So, I can still see exactly how much my hair has grown.

I am not changing my mind about not shaving or cutting my hair, this was simply an end of year treat.

I am reading about making my own soap/shampoo and won’t buy new products. I need to be ready with my own by the time our supply runs out, or go a few weeks again without any.

I am still peeing in the bidet to save water, but once our compost bin is established I’ll be peeing there. I’m sure the neighbours will be giving me some funny looks, but I need to set up a screen for me to also have showers outdoors come summer.

It’s entirely possible for this screen to evolve into an outdoor shower and compost toilet cabin. I have been doing my research into compost toilets. And am wondering why these aren’t mandatory in all new buildings?! Well, it’s at the top of my wish-list but being one of the more pricey items, will not necessarily happen this year.

What about the garden?

I spent the princely sum of €0.80 to buy some garlic, lettuce, cabbage and a little more on a new apple tree, raspberry bush and I forget one more. We’ve planted seeds for some insect friendly flowers, more peas (our current ones were badly damaged in gales), cornflower, borage and chard.

I’m finally getting organized and have began making monthly planting schedules that I can refer to again year after year.

Some lettuce and cabbages I got at the farmer’s market €0.80 for all six and some garlic.

An iris, a survivior from our last house.

Some “Spanish Bluebells”, not really sure what these are. Some flowers we bought with us from our old house.

I also harvested some onions, but have replanted them to produce more. I was very excited to see five little onions had grown from the one I planted last year. Never have I smelt fresh onion before, wow!

We need to get more soil but have plenty of wood chippings left, and we’re avoiding spending money on more pots by upcycling anything and everything that has no other value or use. As part of our cutting down on rubbish, we now only have one bin, our old coffee maker, which no-one wants to buy, joins an old kettle, old cat litter box, mugs, vases, packets and more.

Having bees is a long way-a-way, given finding them locally has proven a headache. My source of worms has also disappeared, meaning I can’t get some once our compost bin has been established. :-(

And chickens? Given we still eat meat, and that I have found much cheaper starting options than I originally posted? Yes, they are back on the radar – but with no clear date in mind for when we’ll get them. I can always feed the kitchen scraps too, but will there be enough for feed and compost?

What else is new/old?

We’ve still got plenty of old pallets and wood to make more things but have no real need for anything just yet. Maybe our outdoor bathroom/screen or some pot containers. I guess there’s no rush to decide.

Sadly, I am still waiting for my Altered Nozzle, the sooner we get this and save some water the better.

We’re ready to sell on more items such as books and other odds, but having got sick of boxes, we recycled or upcycled them and will now just have to accept less for items than we had once hoped.

I’ve been checking through my social media and have lost access to my Tumblr, but I’m not currently too bothered by this. If you’re messaging me there, I won’t get it.

The future?

Let’s just see what happens with Instagram, vlogging and other social media, but for sure I am excited to continue writing here.

As I said, chickens sometime this year and hopefully bees who knows when.

Willow coppice for firewood is also on my list, but this may not be a reality until we have our own land… along with the wind turbine.

I plan on getting/making a camping shower for free hot water this summer, but in the meantime we will need the boiler and gas for short hot showers.

Other things for the longer future that require we own our home, need more land or basically money are a plant-based grey-water filtration system and that compost toilet.

I don’t expect many people dream and wish for a compost toilet, but I’m one of them now.

And of course, more crop plants.

Phew. I think I’ve said enough. Thanks for reading this mammoth post. I’m so excited for the year ahead, and hope you continue to follow us on this journey.

Time to remind myself of what we've already achieved & what we want to work towards. #gogreen It has been six months since starting this blog, and now feels like the ideal time to give you all an update and help remind myself of what we've already achieved and what we want to work towards in the months and years ahead.

#Chickens #Cleanliness #Cooking #Eggs #environment #Food #gadgets #green #Heating #lighting & electricity #piggy bank #Plants #recycle #the pennies #them pounds #upcycle #Ups N Downs #veggie &039;n&039; vegan #Water

0 notes