Going on 12 months | teeth, hair and more updates

Hey lovelies,

Firstly, can I just say thank you for all of the kind words that I’ve received over the last week or so? I think sometimes we need reminders as humans that we are on the right journey and that the decisions we make, can have an impact and not only inspire but perhaps make a difference. When people reach out and connect with me, I feel more motivated and more inspired to continue down my life journey of aligning myself with my values so that I can be the most real ‘me’ I can be. Which is like the full circle of Life. One can not be without the other.

Anyway.

12 months on the 17th. Wow. Time flies. This non-existent, intangible thing we call ‘time’ actually has brought me full circle. Something that I didn’t think could be done, I’m doing. And I can’t stop. Won’t stop. I actually stopped for a minute to YouTube this song and this song.

So what’s new now that was different a month ago?

1. I’m over conditioner.I have a handful of conditioner left and I don’t need it anymore. I’ve been forgetting to even use it.  This was how I made it before with my friend: HERE. But over the months something happened to my hair (me) and it kind of just started to look great and feel great without it. And I have a ton of hair. It’s really thick too. And wavy. I think my hair is back to it’s natural state. And it means my friend and I save money.

   My other friend commented the other day how I’ve come a long way from being the hairstylist that I was (kind of still am, I still cut people’s hair who I love) for 7+ years. I used to know all the products and be completely invested and now I’m like, “yeah I don’t really need to wash my hair nor do I do anything with it or put anything in it.”

   Do you know how much time (and money) I save? I literally roll out of bed and do nothing to my hair.

   Although I never use anything on my hair, I’ll probably do a post on ZW ways to still style your hair with DIY products that do the same thing as conventional ways. This goes for make-up. Since hair and make-up for me are still creative outlets, I might as well make my own to try on people.

2. I changed my toothpaste. Again. 
   And probably will again once I get bentonite clay.
   So I can try something similar to this recipe HERE.
   My first toothpaste was HERE.
   My second was HERE.
   Right now, it’s just baking soda and xylitol. So easy, yet so satisfyingly clean. It takes me a whole minute to put it together.

   Here’s the RECIPE:
   3 tbsp baking soda
   1 tbsp xylitol
   Stir with a chop stick and store in a glass jar.

3. A sharing economy has begun.
   I love sharing. And since this started, it’s almost just like everything makes sense in life to share. I mean my friends and I already had this kind of mentality, there just wasn’t really a name for it. But now being zero waste, it totally helps to reduce waste especially when some products can only be found in plastic tubs or shipped online, like this bentonite clay for example.It goes something like this:

   One friend needed xylitol. I told her I had some. She told me she has bentonite clay. So we’re trading. Now that eliminates me having to go buy a container of clay and her a container of xylitol, saving 2 containers from going to recycle or landfill. Next time, we’ll split the costs of a container so it saves us money too.

4. I ditched the phone plan. 
   I use Fongo, it’s Canadian but things like Skype are more international and are similar and offer free phone numbers, like Fongo does. I ported my cell phone number to Fongo so people can still get in touch with me when I’m in Wi-Fi area. And when I’m not, it’s like I left my phone at home and holy crap guys, guess what? I have to be present. And not on my phone around people! WOW what a crazy concept. Not being on your phone in the presence of another person or while you’re doing Life!To be fair though, I have been considering getting a Mobile Hotspot device for business, like when I start wedding season and need to quickly figure out where the hell the next venue is or connect with one of my team members who is at another job and I’m nowhere near Wi-Fi. It’s only $5-$10/mth, no contract, when you buy the device and I would find the device used, for half the price.

   I also may not do this. Who knows. Who cares.

5. I struggled for a little with vegetarianism at the start but I have now found my backbone.
   I never really ate much meat this past year. I’d eat a few things but I’d cringe thinking about where it came from. Except for the kind my friend gets from Heritage Harvest Farm. They care about their animals and let their pigs be forest roamers and they are local.

   Then I wrote about how I wanted to make the switch and for some reason it became even more in my face. Like everyone was shouting EAT MEAT! YOU NEED IT YOU FUCKING WEIRDO! AWESOME YOU DON’T MAKE GARBAGE BUT NOT EATING MEAT?! YOU’RE LITERALLY AN IDIOT ALIEN.

   Mostly my parents. So I decided to give myself less pressure and stopped thinking about it so much. Then I kind of avoided people. And now, I’m proud to say I actually say no. I just don’t talk about it with people because they try to justify why I need it and then try to debate with me about the meat industry, as if I don’t do my research or like I don’t care about animals. So for example, with my parents, if there’s meat in the dish, I eat around it or eat the other dishes that aren’t meat. I don’t make a fuss. I just mind my own business.

   The tricky part is that my son loves it. He loves meat. He cries if he can’t have it when it’s in front of him. I struggled with this and decided I’d travel the route of less resistance. I don’t feed it to him when we’re together and I let it go when we’re with others. We’ve talked about it and what it means, but if he’s anything like me, the more pressured he feels to do something, the more he’ll rebel against the idea. Kind of like how I am with society and crap.

And that’s it.

Also: here’s 5 tips for you newbies joining the adventure along with my 12 months of garbage.

P.S. A secret side note, you’ll find me in February’s issue of Ottawa Family Living Magazine and in next weekends Ottawa Citizen in the Home section – thanks to everyone who shared EA’s video about my zero waste life. Big huge hugs!