November Plant Update

November went by very quickly and it was a month spent mostly working and inside. This was the hardest month in recent memory for plant observations. There was still some to be had of course! Visiting and having visitors is always helpful for getting out of your comfort zone and into nature.

My mother-in-law’s beautiful plants!

I’ve never seen this plant before. It looks soft and fluttery, but it is stiff.

Baby pink pineapple!!!

We visited a really lovely plant shop in Nashville.

How is anything this colors?

There were many huge plants with huge leaves.

Blue sky, green trees, brown grass.

Lovely skies in November.

The days are getting so short, and afternoon walks feel like evening walks.

Staying in and still seeing golden hour.

How was your November for plant observations? What is the weather like where you are? Do you take the time each month to get out into nature?

November in Review

November started busy, stayed busy, ended busy. November was a whirl wind. We saw so much family and friends, explored new places, visited old haunts, saw change and renewal. We still had time to rest.

In the beginning of the month we were traveling. We got to see our family in the south, which is always a rare and special occasion. We got to visit areas that we haven’t seen in many years, and it was so interesting to see what had changed, and how things stay the same.

We also had friends visit us this month which is always a pretty rare occurrence. Life and work were busy this month. Having many celebrations broke the month us, and made it move even quicker.

We were able to walk and explore some at home. #watchercats were feeling the weather change, but many were out and about this month.

The month ended with a family centric holiday which was a great balance to seeing fam in the beginning as well. Getting to make traditional foods, play games, and generally relax with family is always a nice change for us.

There was a lot of work in Nov, but a lot of rest as well. We only have one more month to the year. Let’s say hello to December and goodbye to 2019.

On My Mind On Friday Morning

What is it about the Winter that makes want to make cookies? Here are a few that look good. (1, 2, 3)
We booked a trip to spend some time in Congress Hall, Not sure if we will see this tree or not, but here’s hoping! I also love the idea of donating a tree rather than just tearing it down.
I never snowboarded, not being a fan of being out in the cold, heights, or hurtling down mountains, but Burton Snowboards were an iconic brand and lifestyle for my 90s childhood. RIP Jake Burton.
Another good story about a New Jersey tree living on after it has been felled.

On a more serious note, something on my mind today is how black indeed Black Friday is. It’s long been my practice to boycott this yearly event and every few years someone comes up with a campaign to spark the same thought in the general public. This year, especially, I think that it is important to remember that needless and mindless consumption is literally killing our planet. Here is a quote from the above article:

“When we buy into the seemingly good deals, we send a message to brands that it’s okay for them to thoughtlessly produce, at the cost of people and the planet…”

This weekend is a good time to think about what you and your family need. Do they need stuff? Or is it really something else that’s needed now?

If you do purchase this weekend, I urge you to stay away from corporate brands, malls, and mass produced items. Please think about buying local, handmade, sustainable, low impact and plastic free.

Thank you, as always for listening here.

What I Ate on Thanksgiving 2019

Started the day as every day should begin - with coffee.

There were quite a few breads and things about the house that needed to get eaten, so I toasted a few olf buns and reheated some hashbrown patties that were left over from a breakfast out. I also had a bit of veggie bacon that has been hanging around the freezer collecting ice.

Another thing I’m trying to use up is my old stash of various teas. This was the last of a loose leaf jasmine green.

Next we headed to my father’s house for Thanksgiving Dinner!

He always has lots of cheese and crackers for us, and we shared a aged sour beer that we like. The stuffed celery are a holiday tradition. Some days we have olives, but today we had some fresh fruits.

He prepared the entire dinner, which was mostly just veggies. Roasted cauliflower, roasted brussels sprouts with hollindaise sauce, green beans with tomatoes and garlic, mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes, herb stuffing, and veggie gravy. He makes the best gravy from a from scratch veggie stock and onions.

Last Year we tried a field roast, but this year was tofurkey. Like last year, we all agreed that we could have done without this as a “main” dish and just stuck with more vegetables. This tofurkey was one he actually purchased last year and had frozen, so it was better to use it up than not eat it.

After a walk we got into dessert but we barely made a dent. We had locally made pie and cheese cake, as well as some chocolates my father bought. Decaf coffee was in order but still kept me awake too long!

This was definitely not a zero waste thanksgiving and I struggle with that more and more each year. But one must do what we can. I do feel like becoming more mindful of zero waste and low impact living reflects in every choice I make now. But I can’t let it drive me or my family crazy, either. I feel the same about social justices, learning from and reflecting on history and standing up for the rights of the oppressed. It’s easy for this holiday to be done away with in my mind for the atrocities it is based in. But to keep the memory of many good times with family and friends alive is important as well. Let’s learn from our triumphs and our offenses and do better in the future.

How was your Thanksgiving?

On My Mind On Friday Morning

Restoration begins on this century old carousel in Sea Sides Heights, NJ. I definitely plan to visit once it’s back up and spinning.
I do love Alan Alda.
Vegan meat made from air? We truly live in the future.
I don’t know why I never thought about eating the leaves of cauliflower!
Speaking of Merry Go Rounds, here is an interesting photo essay on state fairs and carnivals.

6 More Months of Zero Waste: November and Your Zero Waste Kit

In 2017 I started my zero waste journey. Zero Waste is the goal, mindful practice is the action. When I use the term Zero Waste, that is my ultimate goal, but Less Waste would be a more accurate description of my evolving lifestyle.

If you’ve been following along, you’re well on your way to becoming more zero waste and low impact in 2019. We’ve taken a little break after July, hopefully keeping up with the practices we learned in the beginning of the year. Now that the year is coming to an end, it’s time to continue this journey. By keeping to a schedule of new things we can do each month, we are breaking down a seemingly impossible task, giving up single use plastic and greatly reducing our waste, in to easy to achieve steps. Here’s what the next six months look like:

November - Zero Waste Kit
December - No Gifts
January - Clothing and Fast Fashion
February - Mass Transit
March- Bathroom Make-over
April - Grow Your Own Food

For the first month back at our goals, let’s set ourselves up for success by creating a zero waste kit we can carry with us to help us in our goals.

The more commercial aspects of the Zero Waste movement might have you believe that you have to go out and buy a fancy, expensive, ready made zero waste kit. But I suggest that to truly reduce your waste, you utilize items you already have or second hand items. Everyone’s kit might be different, depending on what will best help them reduce waste and refuse single use plastics in day to day life.

In my kit, I like to keep a fork, a spoon (or a fork/spoon combo), a metal straw, chopsticks, a container for to go items, a water or coffee cup, a napkin, and one or more small bags. I keep all these items in a small canvas bag that I got as a wedding favor. The whole kit is easy to carry on it’s own, or can fit into my larger shoulder bag. I also often keep extra utensils, napkins and straws in my kit in case someone I’m with needs them.

Maybe you only need a few of these items, or maybe you need more than this. Your zero waste kit should be unique to you!

Keep your kit in your car, on your bike, in your purse or in your pocket, by your desk, or where ever it will help you the most.

Ask yourself some questions to help determine what you might need in your kit. What disposables or plastic items do you end up buying or using the most? When do you most often cave to getting these items. What are the times that you end up using plastic, and how can you prevent that?

Do you already have a zero waste kit? What’s in yours?

For those following along, here are what we’ve already done to reduce waste in 2019. For those new to this challenge take a look here to get some ideas for what else you can be doing!

January - Trash Audit
We separated and looked our trash to see what we are throwing away and what we can reduce.
February - Declutter Everything
We went thru what we have to declutter and reduce.
March - Switch to Paper
This month we moved to paper to get one step closer to reusables.
April - Compost
Composting is an easy way to reduce food waste and prevent it from reaching the landfill.
May - Meatless Monday
One of the best ways to improve the environment is to stop eating factory farmed meat and industrial fish. Small steps lead to big change so this month we gave up meat (or dairy or fish)
June - No Bottled Water
We gave up bottled water as an avenue to give up more disposable plastic in Plastic Free July.

Something Nice: A Dining Room Table

When we first moved to NJ, we din't buy very much furniture, but we did have to buy a few big ticket items that we didn't have in NYC. We bought a couch, bc we only had a love seat in Brooklyn, bc that's what the space could afford. We kept the love seat (it has a pull out bed that's actually pretty comfy). We bought a queen bed; With more space we decided to luxuriate a little bit! We bought a vintage desk, vintage display case, and vintage floor lamp. That's it. 

To me that seemed like a lot, but when I looked around our home, it was pretty sparsely furnished. 

The one item that we still really wanted in our home was a dining room table. With everything we bought, it was hard to find furniture we liked, fit our budget, and we felt good about buying. We buy second hand. For a table we had very specific concerns. We are hard on surfaces. We draw, sew, mold, cook, eat, sort shells, pet cats, cut fabric, write letters, repot plants, etc... and we needed a table that could hold up to everything we throw at it, but also looked nice. 

Or at least, looked nice until we inevantably destroyed it. 

Needless to say we lived with no table for a long time, almost two years. Until one day, my father called to say that he thought he had found us one! A little while later, he drove up with the perfect, mid-century modern table sticking out the back of his car! He had found it out for trash day in the retirement village that his mother lives in. A little worn, a little wobbly, a little dusty, we brought it in and it was perfect.

Now two years after that, we’ve accumulated a lot more furniture, but we still love our dining room table. We do all the activities and projects we thought we would do, plus more, every day.  We’ve had 6 cats use the table and now a roommate, too. We’ve hosted few dinners, but a very few. It’s usually a mess, often mid project, but we have started eating dinner at it each night again, and it’s a wonderful thing.

On My Mind On Friday Morning

I thought this was a very sweet article about Rod Stewart!
This is a fun map of New Jersey stars.
Did you see the Beaver Moon this week? I missed it :(
I only do one of these five exercises that are supposed to help you live longer. But I would like to do three of them.
My husband and roommate have been making action figures of each other. This is what we do in our house.

2019 Goals | October Recap and November Goals

I did spectacularly bad with October’s goals.

Finish 1 house project
There are so many to choose from? Should we finish remodeling the kitchen, cleaning the basement, fixing the roof, decluttering the house, wallpaper two walls, repaint the bathroom? The list goes on! Hopefully this month will see one project finished!
We did get some work done of multiple projects, but nothing got completed.

Read 2 books
I’m half way thru one, but I want to keep my momentum up!
Not only did I now read too much I love the book I had been half way through.

Eat out 8 times only
I want to get better at cooking at home, saving that money, and eating out less. We do not go out as much as many people, but I’d like when we do to be more mindful.
Wow, I failed this in an epic manner.

Move 45+ plants
This month, as it gets colder, I really will have to move the plants back inside and around.
This didn’t get done entirely in Oct.

Inbox to 500
I’m back on my computer clear out goals.
I didn’t even touch this goal.

I really had no idea what I wanted my goals for November to be until I sat down and wrote them. Being so close to the end of the year, goal setting feels a little hopeless. We all like somehting to start fresh, should I just wait until the new year to make goals? Since I did so poorly last month, should I even bother? In the end I decided to make some goals, bc you can’t reach them if you don’t set them!

Reach out to friends
There’s quite a few that I want to make sure to say hello to and check in with this month.

Be direct
This is a weird one, but I feel like it goes this the first. I want to make sure to be direct and forthcoming with people this month. Gossip may not be the exact right word, but being direct doesn’t quite cover it.

Give calendar blocking another try
I want to see if this productivity/organization method can help me in my day to day.

Cook at home -A LOT. Eat out LESS.
I think this one speaks for it’s self.

Creative challenges
I need some challenges to keep me on my toes creatively. My plan is to look for these methods this month, and hopefully put some in play.

What challenges did you face last month when it came to completing your goals?
What are you goals for November?

Mad Cat Garden | October

I was surprised at how far our garden lasted into October. We didn’t get our first frost until the first week of November, and the garden thrived in the mild weather. The garden was working away, but we didn’t take too much advantage of it, mostly letting it do it’s thing unhindered.

Poblano peppers grew and grew and we harvested them for salads and tacos.

Radishes that we planted late grew up and we enjoyed eating them as well. But end of October, they were big and happy but early November’s frost means we have to pick them all soon.

Wind storms and rain battered our beds and the flowers were loosing their perkiness by mid Oct. The tomatoes were looking scraggly but hanging in and still ripening on the plants. We ate tomatoes but they weren’t as sweet or flavorful as in peak season.

We tended top the blueberries and tried to make a start winterizing those and other plants that will remain outside. It’s our goal to create a snow shelter for our bluebs this year, as we think it will be a snowy winter. Much discussion was had on this subject, but no plans were confirmed.

The tomatoes in the front bed all died and we were able to take the stakes down. But the orange sage is still going strong for the end of it’s second season. We transplanted all the peppers we had in pots to the new front bed that we had intended for herbs but never planted. The peppers did well in the front until the cold snap.

We are still rueing that we didn’t get a chance to plant a Winter garden, but we will have larger plans for that and for next Spring, Summer and Fall!

How is your garden looking in October?

Zero Waste Travel | The Good Fill

One thing we love to do when we travel is visit the kind of shops and spaces tat we enjoy and see how they are different in each town or city. We always try to find thrift shops, toy shops (especially vintage toys), groceries, comic book shops and more. A new kind of place that we have started looking for is Zero Waste shops.

When we were in Nashville last week, our family told us about The Good Fill, in the Fatherland District of Five Points.

This was a very neat shop filled with zero waste supplies and refillable options. The stock was mostly focused on bathroom swaps like shampoo bars, shampoo in bulk, safety razors, dental floss, etc…

The shop is very tiny, nestled into an area where there are many such small shops. It carries a variety of items to help you shop in bulk, like cotton produce bags, food tins, keep cups, etc… The had cleaning supplies, and even some pet supplies.

While we were there, the shopkeepers were sorting out recycling that they collect. Hard to recycle items, like makeup cases, toothbrushes, and more are collected there. They also offer a discount for bringing an empty jar to donate for refills.

Like all the ZW shops I’ve been to, the items at The Good Fill were pretty pricey. This might be a constant problem in the ZW world, especially as it gains popularity, but I did feel this shop was trying to combat it to some extent. By providing other services and information and by allowing customers to bring their own bottles and bags to be filled The Good Fill is providing options for lower cost zero waste lifestyles.

I would highly recommend this shop to anyone looking to learn more about zero waste in the Nashville area. I was happy to support them on this trip and I plan to purchase from them again online.

Do you have a zero waste or package free shop in your area? Leave it in the comments!

On My Mind On Friday Morning

Recycling might seem hopeless, but that doesn’t mean we should give up. In our house, we try to make sure we reduce our single use plastics, reuse as much as we can, and we still recycle the rest. We are also always aiming to become better recyclers.
I stopped eating sea food for envrionmental reasons, mostly to do with ocean plastic and over fishing. I do miss it some times. Bivalves might be a sustainable solution.
Has any reader bought from this clothing company, Devinius? They say the are sustainable and ethical, but it’s so hard to tell what’s real and what’s green washing these days?
Although we no longer live in Brooklyn, I always get my holiday pies at Four and Twenty Blackbirds. Here’s some other pies to enjoy. I also came across this list of doughnuts in NJ. Looks like I’ll have to add some to my to see/eat list.

October Plant Review

October went quickly from the last days of Summer to blustery Fall. We were able to explore and take note of the changes. We observed much but took photos of little.

October traditions.

We rescued a few of the last butterflies.

Bright and cheery.

I love these colorful berries that grow on our back fence.

We tried to explore our local parks this month.

and visit with some neighbors.

A fall feeling lichen.

The tents are closed up for winter.

Meeting dinos.

A Fall finale.

I wished I had gotten more pics of the trees this month. We got a chance to leaf peep, which is always a treat. What is Fall like where you are? What were your plant observations this month?

October in Review

October was a good month, busy and warm and rainy and blustery. A true taste of Fall with changing leaves, the remains of summer dwindling, bookended by travel and giving a taste of Winter.

#watercats like the cool but sunny days, the last of the bugs, bees and butterflies visited, some trips were made, some travel had. We explored some old haunts, went on new adventures in our own town and got to travel to distant cities.

October seemed short, being packed full of anniversaries, events, openings, and other milestones. But it was long with warm stretches, windstorms, the last beach days, the first winter nights.

October went by in a rush, Autumn feels almost over. November has already started off busy, let’s see where it leads.

Denver Botanic Gardens

When we went to Denver last month, we tried not to plan too many things to do. We were visiting friend and wanted to go with the flow. One of the only things we heard was not to be missed was the Denver Botanic Gardens. We made sure to get there on our trip and they did not disappoint.

These Botanic Gardens have a nice mix of inside and outside spaces. I enjoy gardens that have a good balance of both. The weather was very hot, but with no humidity which made both spaces enjoyable in their own ways.

This indoor room drenched in mists were definitely a Jurassic Park lover’s dream.

Outside, there were a lot of neat little areas as well. We sat for a while in this bamboo grove.

And my friend dreamed of quant weddings in this airy outside pagoda.

We saw a lot of little creatures while we were there, all enjoying the garden as much as we did.

Admission to this garden was very reasonable at $12.50, I felt bc of the size and variety of things to see and do. They had a separate kids garden that also had a lot of fun things in it. We were disappointed to learn we missed their annual plant sale by only one day!

Overall, I would highly recommend this Botanic Garden and would definitely consider returning if we ever end up in Denver again.

Have you been to the Denver Botanic Garden? What are your thoughts? What city has your favorite garden?

Something Nice: Life Drawing

Technically life drawing, or live drawing, isn’t new to me. I was an artist when I was young and life drawing was always one of my favorite activities. So the activity itself isn’t new, but going to a class in my very own city by the sea is. And that is nice!

I’d seen the advert in a local gallery but it took years before I actually signed up. I’m glad I finally did and after one session, I’m hooked!

Now I have to figure out how to incorporate this activity into my monthly routine!

Have you taken any classes in your area recently? What resources are there for learning near you?

Mad Cat Capsule | Autumn 2019 (October, November, December)

For Fall, I wanted to get back to a more traditional Capsule Wardrobe. I wanted to make sure to go thru most of my clothes, get rid of things I’m not going to use, and to pull out old favorites to wear for the next three months. I wanted to keep to a set number of items, include shoes.

In the past few capsules, I mainly used the same clothing, some of my all time favorites. For Fall, I wanted to bring out some new (old) items. When I first started making capsules, I would have everything ready by mid month but now it takes me longer and longer to finalize my capsule. Here’s what my capsule is looking like Mid October.

6 Jeans - Everlane blue (sustainable, ethical), everlane grey (sustainable, eithical), raw edge dark blue (thifted), engineer jeans (thrifted), wide leg black (thrifted, vintage), F21 teal (thrifted)

10 Sweaters - Teal (3+ years), rainbow (3+ years), dark grey (3+ years, hand me down), black holey (3+ years), black cardigan (5+ years), grey and blue (3+ years), grey lacy cardigan (thrifted, 10+ years), grey cashmear (vintage, thrifted), grey John cardi (vintage, hand me down), one undecided

6 Tanks - Teal (5+ years), grey (10+ years), black (10+ years), black strappy (10+ years), black cropped (15+ years), one undecided

12 T Shirts - Spiritualized (10+ years), Happy Bday Sandwhiches (ethical, thrifted, 9+ years), bones (10+years), grey aa (ethical, 10+ years), blue aa (eithical 10+ years), aa grey v neck (ethical. 10+ years), bahamas (thrifted 10+ years), japan (thrifted), ford (thrifted, vintage), hypercolor, blue forgotten boardwalk cat (supports local biz), one undecided

8 Long Sleeved Shirts - Grey turtle neck (thrifted), light green waffle (ethical, 10+ years), talula’s baseball T (supports local biz), denim henley (3+ years old), blue over shirt (found in bar), lavender over shirt (thrifted), grey waffle shirt (10+ years old), one undecided

4 Other Shirts - Felix the cat (thrifted), blue silk (thrifted, vintage), black Emily shirt (hand me down), white over shirt (thrifted, vintage, hand made)

4 Skirts - Black leather (thrifted, vintage), grey leather (thrifted, 10+ years), long black (8+ years), black velvet (thrifted, vintage)

4 pants - Bone leggings (10+ years), 3 undecided,

4 Dresses - Eileen Fisher silver (ethical, sustainable, thrifted), blue denim (thrifted), black and white floral (thrifted), one undecided

6 Shoes - Velcro Vans (3+ years), Emily boots 3+ years old), slip on vans (3+ years), two undecided

Bc this isn’t a complete capsule, the final number might change but it looks like 65 pieces. Almost all of them are slow fashion or approaching it. This might be my first capsule of which I can say that. I’m looking forward to using this capsule and getting back into making my capsules every 3 months.

How long does it take you to create each season’s capsule? Do you create four per year? Do you ‘Shop” your closet or stored clothes?

On My Mind on Friday Morning

One can never go wrong with cat pics! These were inspired by a rescue cat and spanned a career in NY and NJ.
This article made me feel better for all those times I was teased for walking fast.
Although more known for it’s Summer attractions, Fall always makes me think of Cape May..
Now that the weather is turning colder, I’m allllll about cooking at home again. I love a warm oven to take the chill off a morning or night. These veggie burgers sound good and I’ve had the recipe stashed for a very long time. Seems like a good time to put it to use.
I’ve been following and loving Zerowaste.japan’s easy zero waste swaps on instagram. How many have you swapped?

September Plant Update

September was full of flowers and the last of Summer. We tried to get out and observe as much as possible, taking in as much of Local’s Summer as we could. We saw critters and got to explore new landscapes. We ate from the garden. We saw plenty of our favorite flowers and some of our not so favorite “pests”.

We tried to rescue this $1 hibiscus. Not sure that it’ll make it.

A neighbors mushrooms.

echinacea are one of my all time favorites.

I will always remember when I saw my first american beauty berry.

We were still getting visitors to our milkweed.

And these flowers we planted in spring were still thriving in the raised beds.

So many bees.

Met this fellow in a corn maze.

This bee was preparing for fall.

A lake in Colorado.

The beach at home.

My husband does not like spiders, but I thought this fellow was so sweet!

We broke in our new car with hauling some stumps home.

What were plant observations like near you? Was the season winding down, or gearing up? September didn’t feel like the end of summer as it was so vibrant, warm and bright. But we know the seasons are turning.

6 More Months of Zero Waste

In 2017 I started my zero waste journey. Zero Waste is the goal, mindful practice is the action. When I use the term Zero Waste, that is my ultimate goal, but Less Waste would be a more accurate description of my evolving lifestyle.

Starting in January and leading to Plastic Free July, we (readers of this blog and I) tried to become more zero waste. Zero waste is the goal, but creating less waste and having a lower impact on the destruction environment is the means by which we get there. Learning to set aside our own convenience and take personal responsibility for improving the world around us, for ourselves, for future generations, and for the planet, is the mental attitude needed to accomplish this goal. Each person’s journey is different and one can only start where they are and do what they can, but it’s now undeniable that each person should at least be trying. To help and inspire, I have chose to make our 6 Months of Zero Waste simple and easy to adapt to just about any lifestyle.

Here’s what the first 6 months looked like:

January - Trash Audit
We separated and looked our trash to see what we are throwing away and what we can reduce.
February - Declutter Everything
We went thru what we have to declutter and reduce.
March - Switch to Paper
This month we moved to paper to get one step closer to reusables.
April - Compost
Composting is an easy way to reduce food waste and prevent it from reaching the landfill.
May - Meatless Monday
One of the best ways to improve the environment is to stop eating factory farmed meat and industrial fish. Small steps lead to big change so this month we gave up meat (or dairy or fish)
June - No Bottled Water
We gave up bottled water as an avenue to give up more disposable plastic in Plastic Free July.

In July we participated in Plastic Free July where we used the month to give up as much disposable plastic as possible. Hopefully you were able to change your mindset with this exercise. Did it stick? Did PFJ change the way you look at disposable plastic? Maybe it did, maybe it didn’t, but just bc July is over, doesn’t mean we can’t keep thinking of how we use plastic and what we can do better.

Hopefully some plastic free habits that we learned January to July lingered in the following months and now were ready to take on some new challenges!

It’s time to look to the next 6 months:

October - Zero Waste Kit
November - Clothing and Fast Fashion
December - No Gifts
January - Bathroom Make-over
February - Mass Transit
March - Grow Your Own Food

Join us as we explore these topics and continue our journey to becoming more zero waste. Follow along in your own time, take what you can use, or share your progress and ideas in the comments below!