Life is Good. Busy but Good.
It's been a busy spring! We are settling into our new home and getting involved in the community here. Spring has been beautiful here on the coast, so we're trying to enjoy all the new beaches and hiking trails that we can.
One of our most exciting developments is our involvement with a local non-profit, Noyo Food Forest. They're an organization that promotes local and sustainable food to build community. Seneca has been taking a class from them since we moved here at their Learning Garden (which is at the high school - they provide fresh produce for school lunches and teach workshops and classes there). Shortly after he started the class, I contacted them about possibly doing some design work. They were really excited about it and they've since become my first local client! I am working on a logo design and web site for them, and there will probably be lots more work to come. We've also gotten involved in one of their new projects: starting a community garden in Fort Bragg. Seneca is now the co-coordinator for the community garden, which we've worked on all spring to prepare for planting. We now have a plot full of organic veggies going as we work on getting the garden up and running. Eventually, we'll have communal garden beds that feed the hungry, compost piles and worm bins, rainwater collection, and several beds for local families to rent. It's been a great experience helping bring this vision to life, and our veggies are already growing!
We are meeting more and more people and really starting to feel at home here. Every Friday we attend a drum circle on the beach, where we can play as loud as we want. We've been hiking and visiting beaches and state parks, and having BBQs and dinner parties with the handful of friends that we knew before moving here. We're even brewing our own organic beer! This seems like it will be a great place to launch my sustainable design studio, since there is a high level of eco-consciousness here, and California is at the forefront of green living.
Speaking of business, I am slowly planning an "official" business for my freelance design work called Ahimsa Creative. Ahimsa is Gandhi's philosophy of non-violence and doing no harm. It perfectly embodies the work I hope to do. Now I'm working on a business plan and getting the paperwork in order, which is coming along quite slowly since I've been so busy!
Busy with what? Well, I went back to work for the
PETA Foundation part-time. I am doing web design while saving the animals, and it's good to be back. I've also had plenty of freelance projects to keep me busy. Recent highlights include completing a web site for
Moscow CommUNITY Walk, an event in Moscow that I helped plan and start last year, and that we visited to attend this year. I also designed logos, flyers, posters, t-shirts, and other graphics for the event, which were all updated this year. I recently finished business cards, promotional post cards, and gift certificates for a non-toxic and green nail spa in Scottsdale, AZ called Organicures. I've been
writing for Green Options each week, mostly about starting a green business on their
Ecopreneurist blog. I will soon be starting on a collection of essays on a sustainable future for the Palouse region with a professor at my alma matter, University of Idaho. A couple other projects are in the works as well, so I'm definitely keeping busy!
Please visit my
photo blog, which I'm trying to keep updated despite the fact that my camera screen is broken, to see pictures of our new home. I write new articles for Green Options every Friday, and you can see my archive
here. I'm also trying to keep the
unplug blog up to date. And of course, watch for more news on Ahimsa Creative, and its own web site, in the future. Ciao for now!
Labels: green living, life, update
A Change of Scenery
There's nothing quite like a change of scenery to inspire you. Traveling in the
volksvegan for the last half of 2007 has given me with a change of scenery every few days or weeks. I grew very fond of life on the road, despite not knowing where we would camp each night or how long the ol' bus would hold up... and I learned a lot from
the experience. I am so grateful for having the opportunity and for everyone who made our trip possible.
After the epic journey in our volksvegan, we finally parked the bus and settled into a new home. A house is quite an upgrade from a small van, let me tell ya! Of all the places we visited, we felt especially drawn to the coast, especially in Northern California. Seneca and I went on our first epic journey together in Redwood National Park, where we fell in love with the giant trees and lush landscape. So it's no wonder that we were compelled to return. We now live in Fort Bragg, California, a small town on the beautiful Mendocino county coastline. There are redwood trees right outside my back door and so far we have made some great connections with the community. We feel at home here, and I'm loving life on the coast - being landlocked all my life got to me I guess.
You can see photos of our journey
in this photo collection and be sure to
visit our new home, too! I am keeping busy but hope to keep updating this site. You can read more on my
unplug magazine blog, or read
my green-tinged articles on the Green Options network. I've got a pretty good mix of projects going, so stay tuned!
What can I say, I like variety. Change is good, too. :)
Change is Good
Well, the
volksvegan adventure of 2007 has come to a close as we settle into our new place in Fort Bragg, CA. After traveling the western US and Canada, we decided to make Mendocino county our home. There are many reasons we're already falling in love with the area...
1. We've never lived by the ocean before. It's amazing to be able to watch sunsets at the coast, find shells at the beach, and run barefoot in the sand (even in January!).
2. Mendocino county recently made it illegal to produce Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). We hate Monsanto, too, so we think that rocks. Organic, locally grown food abounds here.
3. We live among redwood trees - my favorite ancient giants to hug!
4. California is the epicenter of all things green living. Sustainability is big here, and we like that.
5. There are plenty of great breweries nearby, and even a raw/vegan cafe and culinary arts school in our new town.
We're hoping to get our business going in the near future, which means this site will evolve into more of my personal site, and I'll be starting a new design-centered one for the biz. Stay tuned!
It's Official: We're Hittin' the Road
Seneca and I have a dream. It involves a
VW bus that runs on bio-fuels, a happy pooch, and the two of us. And we're officially making our dream a reality.
We have been trying to decide where to move since we graduated two years ago. We love Moscow, but we've both grown up in Idaho and want to expand our horizons a bit. Speicifcally, we're looking for a small, sustainable co-housing community where we can own our own home while being part of a thriving group of like-minded people. Many of the communities we're looking at feature sustainable buildings, off-grid energy systems, organic gardens and community classes. We have to visit the ones we're considering (many offer workshops so we'll try to go to some) and find a place that feels like home before we can make a decision. We're also interested in visiting cities we'd like to live in like Eugene, Mendocino, Portland, Bend, Arcata, or Willits... there's a lot of possibilities and a lot to see, so we're going to see as much as possible this summer!
The decision has been made and now we're quitting jobs (which was very hard for me, but I hope to go back), getting the bus ready to go, and planning the trip. A new engine is going in the bus this week, it's a Turbo Diesel with low miles that will actually be powerful enough for the bus (no more crawling up hills in second gear going 30!). Seneca and a couple of knowledgeable friends will be installing it, and then we'll finish up the interior - it needs a good cleaning and new upholstery. Sen is working on installing a second battery so we can have back-up power for things like the fan, fridge, and my laptop. I'll be taking a couple freelance projects on the way, and we hope to check in semi-regularly and document our trip on
Our Volksvegan Adventure.
So now comes more crunch time: selling most of what we own and figuring out where to store the rest, packing, planning the trip, finding grease and bio-diesel fill-up spots, figuring out our budget, finding someone to move into our place, etc. etc... One great thing about this trip is that it will truly get me to simplify. I have always been a pack rat and it's time to de-clutter, find out what I truly need to be happy, and live more simply.
Along the journey (which is the most important - especially since we don't know the destination) we will be visiting friends who have moved away, doing some backpacking and hiking, promoting sustainable travel, and maybe even leafleting at KFCs in strange towns... we're leaving a lot of it open-ended. We're planning for a concert or two, my cousin's wedding in Portland, visiting our friends in Glacier National Park and Bozeman Montana, checking out Eugene and the surrounding area, and visiting the Redwoods and communities in Oregon and Northern California. Then, depending on how we like living on the road (and how much money we have), we'd love to go Southwest and visit friends, see the string of beautiful National Parks, and just experience the desert. This will probably have to wait until fall though, something tells me a husky doesn't belong in the Southwest in the summer!
The more I think about it and start planning the trip, the more it feels like the right decision. It's probably the craziest thing I've ever done, but I'm young and I might as well do it now! We are soooo excited and will keep you updated about the trip. We are hoping to be on the road by mid-June, experiencing the ultimate road trip. :)
Labels: change, green living, vacation/trips, volksvegan grease bus
Reflections on Spain...
I'm in the midst of post-vacation catch-up and can't believe I returned from Spain almost a week ago! The trip went splendidly, and despite the rain that kept following us around, we managed to have a great time and see some amazing things. We went to Barcelona, Madrid, Granada, Sevilla, and Cordoba. All were beautiful cities, but my favorite was Barcelona. It is on the Mediterranean coast and like a lot of coastal cities, it seemed to have a very laid-back vibe and LOTS of organic & vegetarian restaurants. I got my fill of great art and architecture on this trip: the Picasso museum and Gaudi's unique architecture in Barcelona, the Reina Sofia Modern Art Gallery and the Prado in Madrid, and even some intricate Muslim designs in Granada and Cordoba.
Rachel was a great tour guide and translator, she had planned the entire trip and somehow managed to navigate the busy metro stations, bus stations, train stations, and other places that would have confused the hell out of me. And I am happy to report that Spain DOES have vegetarian food! I had some great food over there—falafel kebap, veggie paella, potato croquettes, gazpacho—but my favorite thing was sangria! :)
I have all my photos up on Flickr in my
Semana Santa in Spain set, but I still have some organizing, labeling, and weeding out to do. So give me a week or two if you want to know where all the pictures were taken. I am worse than a Japanese tourist and took a picture of darn near everything!
In this post are pictures of the Cathedral in Cordoba seen through a narrow "kissing lane" (above), and a view of La Alhambra in Granada (left), as seen from a very steep hill that we climbed in the rain. La Alhambra was beautiful inside, it is an old Muslim palace with a great view of Granada. Rachel has been studying there this semester, and it was great to see her and the country she's been calling home for the past few months. She even has
a blog about her studying abroad experience, although she's not quite as much of a blog addict as her older sis...
Labels: family, vacation/trips
Hola from Barcelona!
I am in Barcelona! Woohoo! It is gorgeous here, despite the bit of rain we've had the last few days, and I have fallen in love with the work of the famous Barcelona architect Gaudi. We got here without any problems (no lost luggage this time, yay!) and despite the jet lag, we went to the Picasso museum and walked down Las Ramblas on our first day here. We even got to go to a market where I found organic vegetarian food. We went on a walk through the Gothic architectural part of town and had some dinner at a vegetarian restaurant. We went to bed early since we were so tired from all the traveling.
Today was Gaudi day - we saw Sagrada Familia, his famous unfinished cathedral (it was started in 1893 and won't be done until 2060!) which was amazing. Then we went to Casa Mila, an apartment building Gaudi designed with undulating balconies and a great view from the roof. (See the picture for a view from the top of Casa Mila with Sagrada Familia in the background). Then we went to Park Guell, which was also designed by Gaudi. The park was gorgeous with beautiful tile work all over and a house Gaudi lived in for 20 years. Tonight we had some tapas (at a place that served little open-faced sandwiches, some of which were sin carne), juice from an excellent vegan restaurant called Juicy Jones, churros and chocolate, and of course, sangria. Very large glasses of it.
I'm not sure if I'll have internet for the rest of the trip, but tomorrow we are headed to Madrid, and then Granada, Cordoba, and Sevilla. It has been fun so far and happily there is actually vegan food in Spain! I'll be back home on April 10th. Until then, adios!
Crunch Time
Why is the week before you leave for vacation the week that
really makes you need the vacation? Oy! I am leaving for Spain next week (going to Boise Wednesday night and Spain Thursday morning) and I have so much to finish before I go that I am going insane. I guess there must something about blogging that is therapeutic.
I've been trying to wrap up my projects for the last month or so, and of course they keep piling up. I have a web site, wedding invites, t-shirt graphics and posters for two different events, and a newsletter to finish and a week to do it. Bring on the caffeine!
March has been flying by faster than I can keep up with it. We went to Moscow's Mardi Gras celebration at the beginning of the month, which basically meant bar hopping and really good live music (and an excuse to dress up). Last weekend was pretty packed between my friend Crystal's birthday party and a peace rally commemorating the 4th anniversary of our invasion of Iraq. (See my pictures of the
peace rally and
read more about it if you so desire). It was a beautiful sunny weekend, so we got some hiking in as well. And, of course, I got some work done.
I am pretty excited about going to Spain, it will be a much needed break! I am going with my parents to visit my sister who has been studying in Granada all semester. We're going to Barcelona, Madrid, Granada, Sevilla, and Cordoba - all during "Santa Semana," Holy Week - which apparently is a big deal to Spaniards. It should be a lot of fun, and quite a culture shock. The only thing I am worried about is finding food I can eat in such a meat-based culture. I'm thinking of bringing some Spanish anti-bullfighting leaflets and maybe some Vegetarian Starter Kits in Spanish... can't pass up an opportunity for activism!
Anyway, I just wanted to forewarn everyone that I will be leaving the night of March 28th and returning the morning of April 10th, so if you try to contact me and I don't get back to you, my excuse is that I'm out of the country! I'm sure I will already have way too many e-mails to get through when I get back, so I won't be as punctual at returning them as I usually am. Oh, and I'm not taking my computer. I need a vacation from it the most! I will be taking as many pictures as humanly possible though and hopefully will get a chance to upload a few to
my flickr page while I'm gone. If not, watch for a ton of Spain pictures when I get back.
Hasta luego, amigos!
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