Stuff- Get Over It

We want it.

We save for it.

We buy it.

We use it.

We put it in the basement.

We forget about it.

We find it again.

We cant get rid of it.

It stays in the basement for a few more years.

We get rid of it. 

We want stuff. 

We are obsessed- more, bigger, better.

It feels good for 5 minutes after you buy it- then that feeling goes away and we need to buy more of it to get the feeling back.

Its cluttering up our lives and adding no value.

Its making us work harder so we can have more of it. Stealing time from family and fun.

Then it is going to the landfill and cluttering up nature.


Detox from stuff.....for your sanity and for the health of the planet....

Do you have any weird attachments to stuff?

Is there a spot in your basement for stuff 

that you will never use but cant get rid of?

I would love to hear you funny stuff stories.

juliataylor@live.ca

@sogreenithurts

Facebook

Thanks for reading my blog!

How To Not Be Judged

It's easy to feel judged- 
and than we judge back. Why not stop the cycle and not feel judged in  the first place.

I was out with my kids in Bobcaygeon and of course the morning had taken me too long and my kids were getting 'hangry'. 

I ordered some food to go and grabbed a muffin to distract the kids while waiting. Instead of being distracted one of them rolled around on the floor, got muffin everywhere, and was pretty much acting like a drunk uncle. 

I felt like the other people in the cafe were thinking "oh my god handle your kids". Then I realized- no they are not, they are probably thinking "I remember those days, she has her hands full". 

They were sharing compassion with me, not judging me. I was the one who decided how to feel.

Since then I have been training my brain to think differently and in turn my interactions with people everywhere have been improving dramatically. Here is 3 things I do now to not feel judged.

I saw a documentary once about a man who travelled from India to spread good karma (and brought us yoga). He travelled from India to Canada to spread good karma!! Can you imagine the interactions he had with people? If you set an intention like that before you go into any type of situation the results are going to be positive!! 

Every time a negative thought about someone or a situation comes into my head - I think 3 good things about them. To really put this practise to the test I think about the people that drive me nuts the most.

Think about 3 Good things that happened that day then...

Mantra (repeat after me)
I love myself for the good and the bad
I love everybody else for the good and the bad
I will listen
I will have compassion for others and myself

Day dream
Think about all of the things I wish for and doze off

Disclaimer

I still have days when I want to tell everybody to f off, and there is always going to be toxic A holes out there- but the more I practise these things the more natural they come to me, and the better I and everybody around me feel. 

From now on I will make a concious decision to not judge people and instead bring positive energy and acceptance to people- and I will receive it in return.




Thanks for reading my blog!
Julia Taylor
@sogreenithurts
on Facebook

How Kawartha Lakes People Are Going Green

Green living is spreading in The City of Kawartha Lakes and it is all the David Suzuki Foundation's fault. 




Green Living 101 at the FreeU is over and the world is a little greener. In the 6 week program written by Lindsay Coulter (David Suzuki's official Queen of Green). Students were presented with a little education, allot of discussion, and green living goals to challenge themselves - picked by them, for them.


Check out the small things they will try that will have a huge impact on the health of our lakes...

• Home-made laundry soap X 5
• Home-made shampoo
• Try out vinegar to clean X3
• Switch to reusable feminine products
• Switch out Teflon pans for cast iron
• Stop using produce bags
• Start composting
• Stop ironing (to save electricity)
• Committed to recycling better X 7
• Take shorter showers

Are you passionate about Green Living? Maybe you would like to have this program or a version of it come to your community?  

Build community

Protect the lakes

Be healthy

I will be happy to facilitate or support you in engaging your community group with this easy, fun, green living challenge. Please contact me.

Julia Taylor
juliataylor@live.ca
@sogreenithurts
Facebook

PS- I really enjoyed this group and learned so much from them. I look forward to seeing them out and about and hearing about their green adventures!

How to Help Save the Rain Forest at Home for Free

Have you seen this footage of the devastating effects of paper use on the rain forest?

I did. It got to me... this is what I'm doing to help stop it.

Ditch These Disposable 

Paper Products for Reusable Ones

Cut Down More Trees   Cut Down Less Trees                                                            
Paper coffee cup                                  Reusable mug
Paper plates                                          Real plates
Disposable diaper's                             Cloth diaper's
Throw away wipes                              Cloth and soap
Wrapping paper                                  Cloth gift bag/newspaper  
Gift cards                                              Email/call/visit                
Paper decorations                               Newspaper
Meat paper (at  the butcher/meat counter)            Reusable containers
Cupcake liners                                     Butter/Oil
Kleenex                                                  Hanky

Buy Recycled Products

Can't live without the disposable versions? Buy the 'Eco' version. Look for 100% post consumer content. If we don't buy products made out of recycled content we have no recycling system. Here is some common things that have 'made from recycled' options (less rain forest killy effects)

Toilette Paper

Paper Towels

Kleenex

Copy Paper

Paper Plates

Go Paperless

Here are some things you can do on-line instead of in print...

Bills Most companies have paperless billing available. You can go paperless with your CKL tax bill and Hydro One here

Magazines Read them on-line, typically an on-line subscription is cheaper too.

411 Do you ever use the print version any more? Cancel your Yellow Pages phone book delivery here

Use Scrap Paper/ Print on Both Sides

Pretty self explanatory!

Recycle Paper (properly)

Make sure what you recycle is actually getting recycled by making sure you are doing it properly. Check your municipal website for details. In CKL? click here

If you are thinking that just you doing this stuff will not make a difference- YOU ARE WRONG! You are that one person, that change that the whole world needs, 

your efforts do count!

Thanks for reading my blog!

Julia Taylor

@sogreenithurts

on Facebook

It's Easy Being Green- unedited; Don't Feed The Ducks

My whole life I have enjoyed the lakes

The old L dock at the Fenelon beach, boating, and wakeboarding, fishing, and kayaking. Snowmobiling and ice fishing in the winter, soaking in the breeze and cooling off in the summer. 

Never did I feel a responsibility to take care of the lake...until one sunny day a few years ago.

*Cue violin dream music*

It was a Sunday afternoon, and my husband and I were out fishing on our old tin boat in the south end of Sturgeon Lake near the floating cottages. On this day a family of ducks came to say hello and as we watched the baby ducks we noticed one scoop up a cigarette but into his mouth. Oh no, what will happen to that baby duck after eating a butt? Will he die? Then the baby spit the butt out- phew.

I wondered- why is there a cigarette butt floating in our lake?

Then it dawned on me.

Me- that's how!

I have been an on and off smoker since I was a teenager, a terribly hard habit to kick, and even though I would never litter and cared about the environment I threw my butts out the window of my truck. Maybe because my truck didn’t come with an ashtray? Maybe because the butt is so small that I didn’t think it was litter? I don’t know why.

At that moment I visualized the butt landing on the shoulder, eventually making its way to the ditch, that then flowing into the lake that I love so much.

From that day on I had an ashtray in my truck and if I was out and there was no ashtray I put it out and put it in my pocket- from that day on it was my garbage and my responsibility.

1 cigarette butt contaminates 1 litre of water- our lake water, and one cigarette butt is enough to poison an animal. 

Our Kawartha lakes give so much to us- let's give back by taking care of them and keeping litter out of them.

Did you know terracycle.ca recycles cigarette butts and gives a charity of your choice money for them? agreenerfuture.ca also gives out pocket ashtray's for free to help you keep your butts off the ground and out of our lake. Check them out!

Pocket ashtray

Thanks for reading my blog!

Julia Taylor

My 'No Poo' Experience

Blow dried curly, brushed out, and then curled with wand

Lot's of people are asking about it- let me tell you it is one of the biggest changes I have made on my green journey. It is weird, it is completely different, and it gets lots of compliments.











I have not shampoo'd my hair in a 5 months and it looks beautiful. In the years since I switched to natural/organic body care I have searched for the best shampoo and conditioner for my hair, never realizing that the packaging of these products effects the health of the environment and in turn my health- so I set out to reduce my packaging waste and the 'no poo' method fit in perfectly (and did not require me to start up a shampoo lab in my house.)


http://www.nopoomethod.com/

Frequently asked questions...

Do you need exlax?
No, not that kind of poo,

Does it stink?
No, actually the baking soda has a nice fresh smell.

How did you do it?
I started washing my hair with baking soda and apple cider vinegar every other day. 1/4 cup of baking soda to a 1 cup of water. 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar to 1 cup of water.

How long did it take before worked?
Solidly- 2 months. The transition period is a bit painful but once you get used to it (if it works for you) it has great results. I had to mess around with the solution a bit to get it right.

Washed and blown out straight, touched with straitner 

Is you hair greasy?
When it gets greasy it needs to be washed.

Con's

• Your hair literally feels like grease all the way to the tips when it is wet- it is a very different washing and brushing experience and it completely transforms the texture of your hair.
• You will have to get used to the way it holds different styles.
• Your brush is pretty much disgusting, washing it doesn't help.
• Have you ever pet a dog and have a dirty hand after, that is almost what happens when you brush dry hair daily.
• It is not sudsy washing so you just have to put the mixture in and smush it around.

Pro's (in my experience)

• No split ends..
• Looks amazing.
• Does eventually get soft.
• Holds styles very well.
• Eventually you only need to wash it once a week.
• Saves money not having to buy products. (ps I still use hair spray if I need to- just leave it in there after)
• Saves the lakes (no toxic by products from shampoos going down the drain)
• Did I say it looks amazing??

Conclusion
This is not for the faint of heart and does not work for everybody. It is something you have to see through and it is a big change to adjust to. If you commit to this process and it works for your hair type you will love it.

washed and air dried

Tips and tricks

• Use apple cider vinegar every other wash (my hairdresser warned me it could dry out my hair, also she want grossed out or put off by me doing this- she had heard of it)
• Brush your hair everyday
• Make sure you ad warm water or add the water in the shower when you mix your solution- or you could be cold shocked!
• When you tell people don't just tell them you have "no poo for 6 weeks" like I did- give them some pre context or you will get some funny looks

Side note- I do not colour my hair, results could be different for regular colourers.

Thanks for reading my blog! I would love to hear your experiences with 'no poo'!
Julia Taylor

Washed, air dried, hot rollers- on day 2

@sogreenithurts
Facebook

Learn to Read Music for Free in Lindsay

How To Read Music

Wednesday nights 

Sept 23 to October 26 2015

6 pm  

Kawartha Lakes Free University

(The Lindsay Library)

How to Read Music (for beginners and experienced musicians who skipped that step). 

Instructed by Wendy Mortimer

Musicians communicate precisely how to play a song by writing notes in a way that is a “code” that can be learned by anyone.

Over six weeks we will develop your knowledge of that code by building an understanding of musical notation, writing that notation, and playing what’s written. People of all musical backgrounds are welcome.

We will use various instruments (quietly – we’re in the library!) to illustrate what we are learning to write and to read.

*Rhythm. Time value of notes and rests, time signatures. Practice playing various rhythms using claps, slaps and drumsticks.
*Pitch. Treble and bass clef, names of notes. Practice naming notes and combining pitch and rhythm. Whole tones and semitones. Accidentals. Ledger lines.
*Scales and Intervals. Key signatures and octaves. Practice.
*Musical Terms and Signs. Practice, and more practice!

For more info email kawarthalakesfreeu@gmail.com

 or On Facebook and Twitter