The life and times of Libby Withnall

Hmm… that’s a hard question to answer isn’t it. And EVERYONE is going to have a different one. Busy Women at A Vision Spendid recently got me thinking about this. I’m sure I’m a long way off what most people would consider to be living simply but to me it’s not just a way of life but a goal to strive towards. It’s also always changing. We’ve only been in our new home for just over 2 years but already we know we wouldn’t have built here now – we would have got more land for our animals and veggies. But we love the location (can ride our bikes to school) and we will stay here for at least another 10-15 years while the kids finish school. A big part of simple living to me is being kind to the environment. We are lucky enough we can afford to do this by having hybrid cars and just today we have a bore being put it so we can have all the water we desire for our garden.

According to wikipedia simple living (voluntary simplicity) is a lifestyle in which individuals consciously choose to minimize the ‘more-is-better’ pursuit of wealth and consumption. Adherents choose simple living for a variety of reasons, including spirituality, health, increase in ‘quality time‘ for family and friends, stress reduction, conservation, social justice or anti-consumerism, while others choose to live more simply for reasons of personal taste or personal economy.

Another definition that I really love is from The Simple Living Network : Simple living — aka voluntary simplicity — has just about as many definitions as there are individuals who practice it. Simple living is not about living in poverty or self-inflicted deprivation. Rather, it is about living an examined life — one in which you have determined what is important, or “enough,” for you, discarding the rest.

Okay, so here’s a list of how I think we live simply.

* Have our own chooks

* Have a veggie garden

* Walk or ride to school when possible

* Try to do more rather than buy

* Menu plan and cook at home

* Limit packaging/bags/etc.

* Recycle where possible

* Don’t buy brand names just because they are brand names (though sometimes do for quality)

* Watching only TV shows I love – mainly lifestyle and discovery health (show that enhance my life)

* Don’t watch the news (too depressing)

* Donate all unwanted/unloved items on a regular basis (reduces clutter and blesses someone else)

* Have a rain water tank, and soon, a bore.

* Buy carbon credits to reduce our carbon footprint

* Staying home in a clean, tidy house thatI love rather than going out all the time (something I did when dd8 was first born)

This last year I have really settled into a comfortable routine and am pleased with how my life is developing. Shopping would still be my biggest hurdle to overcome, but I know I’ve eliminated the need to shop to escape my home and nearly all the purchases I make are useful/needed.

Just like life, simple living is a journey with it’s twist and turns, up and downs.

Aren’t these just the greatest? Sacks for getting your fruit and veggie instead of yet more plastic bags. I was so excited to recently learn about these on Down to Earth. I ordered them from The Fregie Sack on Monday and they arrived Wednesday. Pretty good service. They are so colourful and I can’t wait to use them. Actually I need to buy some more veggie to make veggie soup….

A parting thought before I leave. And yes, I have packed my canvas bags for shopping, in fact they are always in my car and I have 2 little fold up bags from Howard Storage in my handbag.

A few weeks back we bought some Organic Fair Trade tea bags – they came without string – which I thought was a great idea. But after thinking about it some more I realized we didn’t really need to buy tea bags at all. I could use the new little tea pot that Kevin bought a few months ago. Then today I also found another little gadget Kevin had bought which will be perfect for doing my single cups of teas. Not sure if it’s all in the mind but a pot of tea seems to taste a lot better. And on an evironmental side I find I’m putting the loose tea into the tub for the worms rather in the tea bags going in the bin.

Well, we’re back to buying as many organic foods as possible. I know it’s the best for us but sometimes I let the cost put me off. Here’s a list of what should be eaten organic and what doesn’t matter as much.

The Top Twelve – Don’t Buy These Unless They’re Organic

1. Peaches
2 Apples
3 Capsicum

4 Celery
5 Nectarines
6 Strawberries
7 Cherries
8 Pears
9 Grapes – Imported
10 Spinach
11 Lettuce
12 Potatoes

Bottom Twelve — Buy These, Remember to Peel and Wash Well

1 Onions (Least Contaminated of the entire list)
2 Avocado
3 Sweet Corn – Frozen
4 Pineapples
5 Mango
6 Asparagus
7 Sweet Peas – Frozen
8 Kiwi
9 Bananas
10 Cabbage
11 Broccoli
12 Papaya

For those in the Sydney/Illawarra area we get our organic produce from Doorstep Organics – they deliver right to my door and have always been great to deal wtih.

I’ve had this book on my “to buy” list for a while – but I’m waiting for it to come out in softcover. In the meantime here’s where you can see some of the photos . I think it’s interesting how much/little some families had and the amount of fresh/whole foods compared to packaged/processed foods. It certainly makes you realize just how lucky we are. There is another book by the same photographers showing the contents of family homes around the world – I’m getting that one when I buy What the World Eats.

Well, they aren’t just recent. I’ve been researching SImple Living for about a month now. Two website I’ve just discovered which really stike an accord with me (except for the religious stuff I ignore) are

http://walkslowlylivewildly.blogspot.com/

Kevin and I have been watching the UK series River Cottage www.rivercottage.net . Great show. Hugh’s main purpose is trying to educate people about where food comes from – he breeds his own animals for slaughter and while I still don’t believe we need to kill animals for food, I think his message is something that everyone who eats meat should here. The show we watched last night was called River Cottage Treatment and he has 6 chicken eaters come live at his farm – he shows them how his chooks live then takes them to a battery farm (where the chooks can barely walk – some can’t), an organic farm and a free range farm. By the end of the show even the hardest case is convinced to buy free-range or organic chicken. And it took the death of one of his own chicken to convince her that the animal that died for her dinner deserved a decent and humane life.

On a personal note the whole sugar thing has gone out the window but it’s something I still want to persue. At the moment I’m really concetrating on getting the house organised and under control. OUr veggie garden is growing really well – probably due to the “bit” of rain we’ve had the last few weeks and our chooks just keep on growing. Still trying to work out how to post a picture. They are just the cutest girls.

Another website I’m enjoying exploring is http://www.happyfoody.blogspot.com/