Crunchy Granola

I think I've gone hippie. I didn't really mean to, but it just kinda happened. I'm not sure when it started, but I stopped washing my hair every day. Partially because I have a lot of hair and partially because I dyed it (and thus, want to make the dye last as long a possible), I just stopped washing it. It was a little greasy at first, and on those days I would just wear it in a ponytail. Soon, though, my hair started realizing that I wasn't washing it as much, and the grease really went away. Now, I've turned into my mom, washing my hair twice a week. And you know what? I love it! I take way less time to get ready in the morning. My hair feels great, and I'm using less water and less shampoo (both good money saving things).
Alex and I planted a garden (much of it still in the spare bedroom, thank you April Frost!) and we are really looking forward to harvesting our own food that we've grown ourselves. Gardening, for us, has turned out to be a bit of zen. It's a nice escape, it's satisfying, and it brings my mood down after the insanity of a long day. We've also just recently joined a food co-op. Local farmers from outside the city provide fresh fruits and veggies for us throughout the growing season. We're really looking forward to it for several reasons. Firstly, it's going to cut down on the time we spend going to the local farmer's market each week - hello, free weekend time! Yay! Secondly, we're supporting local farms and foods, which makes me feel better in terms of the amount of oil that goes into my food (prefer it to be a very small amount). And lastly, we are eating things that naturally grow in this region, things that are grown without pesticides and on sustainable farms, and thus helping to make a positive impact on our environment. We've been making more food at home, bringing our lunches, and trying to cut back on the amount of waste we create every day. Being a scientist, it's not very realistic to cut back on the amount of waste I create in a given day (unless I just stop experimenting all together), so I figure it's best to cut back on how much waste I create in the rest of my life.
Alex and I love to "trash pick". It's not what you think - living in a city with no trash bins (meaning, people put their trash out on the sidewalk), means that lots of people put their unwanted things out on the sidewalk, for anyone to take. We've scored lots of stuff this way. Walking home the other night, we noticed some plastic bins being thrown away and decided to schlep them home. For what, you might ask? We're building a worm bin. That's right. Worms will eat my garbage. I realize I've gone over the edge now. It's only a matter of time until I buy some Birkenstocks, start dredd-ing out my hair and start bathing in patchouli. Oh well, I guess I'm OK with that. All I know is that I will be so stoked when the worms make a nice little compost for our garden and we aer munching on tasty produce grown in our own backyard. Oh, and don't worry - I still shave my pits....for now :)