This link doesn't have much to do with freeganism, but I still find it interesting. From the fine folks at Virgin:
http://www.screwyourecession.ca/
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Thursday, March 19, 2009
The allure of food, and shopping on the curbside.
I'm teetering closer and closer to starting to shop again. Damn grocery stores, stop looking so appetizing. :P
In other news, while on a walk, we picked up a large granite tile. It'll make a good cutting board. And we took a coffee table off our neighbour's hands.
In other news, while on a walk, we picked up a large granite tile. It'll make a good cutting board. And we took a coffee table off our neighbour's hands.
Searching for a recipe...
I'm housesitting for a friend on vacation right now, and she offered me some leftover couscous and dry red lentils. She's coming home tomorrow, and I want to cook them up for her as a "welcome home" dinner. For the life of me, I cannot find a recipe! Does anyone have a good (vegetarian) one that I could use? I also have some zucchini and carrot that I could add to it.
A small slip-up
I was a bad freegan today. I went to the dollar store and spent three bucks and change (!). All necessary stuff (apple juice, soy milk, and bottled water), so I guess it's not ALL bad.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Reflections thus far
So at about the halfway point through this little experiment, I've come to the following conclusions:
1. it is both very easy and very difficult to live as a freegan, in winter, in a northern climate.
2. we do not always need everything we think we need.
3. with a little bit of creativity, we can get all we want without spending a ton of money.
More on that as I come closer to the end.
I know that when this experiment is over, I will be spending my money in a more just and less wasteful manner. Though it isn't the be-all and end-all of our society, it has incredible power and can bring joy (Bill Gates? Warren Buffett? Bono?) or misery (Madoff? AIG?)
OK, off to figure out how I'm going to pay my (necessary!) Hydro and phone bills.
1. it is both very easy and very difficult to live as a freegan, in winter, in a northern climate.
2. we do not always need everything we think we need.
3. with a little bit of creativity, we can get all we want without spending a ton of money.
More on that as I come closer to the end.
I know that when this experiment is over, I will be spending my money in a more just and less wasteful manner. Though it isn't the be-all and end-all of our society, it has incredible power and can bring joy (Bill Gates? Warren Buffett? Bono?) or misery (Madoff? AIG?)
OK, off to figure out how I'm going to pay my (necessary!) Hydro and phone bills.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Been a while, but I'm back.
I'll be honest, the fact that I have very little money makes it quite easy to be a freegan. That said, it is very difficult to find the things I want for free.
I have been managing to get around public transit, which has been working out well so far.
During this whole experiment, I have been doing a lot of reflecting on what exactly we need to get by in life and what is programmed into us by the corporations that want us to buy. It's required me to be a lot more creative in how I live and what I eat, and I've begun to think of how the people lived back in Jesus' time.
I promise to post more often in the future. If you have any suggestions, feel free to leave a comment!
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Welcome to my blog...enjoy your stay.
Hello everyone, glad you could come by!
This is a chronicle of my freegan adventures through Montreal in winter(!), as an anti-consumerist experiment for Lent. First, some definitions:
Lent is a 40-day liturgical season that begins on Ash Wednesday and concludes at the Great Vigil of Easter. Sundays are not included in the 40-day count because every Sunday is a joyful celebration of Jesus' resurrection. Though not biblical, Lent has long been a tradition in the Christian Church, and it is thought that the tradition of the 40 days recalls the 40 days Jesus spent in the wilderness, fasting and being tempted by Satan (Matthew 4:1-11). Lent is considered a time of penance and discipline. (Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, http://archive.elca.org/communication/whatislent.html)
Freegans are people who employ alternative strategies for living based on limited participation in the conventional economy and minimal consumption of resources. Freegans embrace community, generosity, social concern, freedom, cooperation, and sharing in opposition to a society based on materialism, moral apathy, competition, conformity, and greed. (www.freegan.info)
I guess the goal of this whole experiment is to detach myself from money and realize that, while it is useful, it does not rule the world. I'll get into my own personal take and experience of the situation in another post. For now, take care! Comments welcome, of course.
This is a chronicle of my freegan adventures through Montreal in winter(!), as an anti-consumerist experiment for Lent. First, some definitions:
Lent is a 40-day liturgical season that begins on Ash Wednesday and concludes at the Great Vigil of Easter. Sundays are not included in the 40-day count because every Sunday is a joyful celebration of Jesus' resurrection. Though not biblical, Lent has long been a tradition in the Christian Church, and it is thought that the tradition of the 40 days recalls the 40 days Jesus spent in the wilderness, fasting and being tempted by Satan (Matthew 4:1-11). Lent is considered a time of penance and discipline. (Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, http://archive.elca.org/communication/whatislent.html)
Freegans are people who employ alternative strategies for living based on limited participation in the conventional economy and minimal consumption of resources. Freegans embrace community, generosity, social concern, freedom, cooperation, and sharing in opposition to a society based on materialism, moral apathy, competition, conformity, and greed. (www.freegan.info)
I guess the goal of this whole experiment is to detach myself from money and realize that, while it is useful, it does not rule the world. I'll get into my own personal take and experience of the situation in another post. For now, take care! Comments welcome, of course.
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