Sans TP

In our attempts to live lightly off the land we have made another big change. I want to preface this by saying that it was my wife’s idea. She is the one that made the suggestion. So since we were out of toilet paper my wife suggested that we do without. Imagine the trees that could be saved by not flushing the paper down the toilet.

I have heard of others going without toilet paper, it’s really not a new thing, we’re just copying others. Frankly I don’t think it’s that big of a deal. Sure you get the shock affect when you say that you don’t have toilet paper, but I’m really enjoying this new system and I don’t think it’s weird or gross.

I should also note that I am a toilet paper connoisseur. I grew up camping and I loved finding new things to use as toilet paper. For example, there are some big, soft leaved plants in the Pacific Northwest that put Charmin to shame. Pine cones on the other hand were a bad idea. In fact I don’t know why I ever thought that would even be a good enough idea to try. Snow was really one of my favorite TP substitutes. It’s cold, refreshing, slightly abrasive and cleansing. The only problem is that it melts. You have to start with a lot of snow because it melts quickly and you could end up quite vulnerable. Oh, and it's cold. Besides that, if your snow is too powdery, you're doomed and if the snow is too icy, you are also doomed.

So the alternative to toilet paper is a wash cloth that you get a little damp. It’s cool (unless the water has warmed up), refreshing, and it cleans well. Sure you have to do the laundry, but it’s no different than the cloth diapers we wash (maybe I should note that my wife generally does the laundry). The water makes it cleansing and it works great.

Does it make a difference? On the one hand, it’s not a lot of TP that we’re saving, but at the same time we are one family that doesn’t use any. It’s the little things that make a difference.

Adventures

Who knew that a birthday these days lasted a week? One of the gifts that we received was a trip to Thanksgiving Point which is an attraction with a farm, dinosaur museum and other cool stuff.

The Mugwump was able to ride a horse. He really enjoyed that.

Six-pence also got to ride a pony. He wasn't a big fan, but with Mom's help he stuck it out and may have even enjoyed it there at the end.

"My what a big nose you have." I think this was a Clydesdale, but really I don't have a clue since I'm not really a horse person. Six-pence liked the big horse, but wasn't ready to pet him.

In the dinosaur museum the Mugwump was almost eaten by a triceratops. Luckily the dinosaurs there were all dead.

The best part of the dinosaur museum was the erosion table. Using pumps and a fun shaped table you could build things with sand (like dams, I liked building dams) and then wait for the water to work it's magic and bury some dinosaurs and uncover others. I REALLY enjoyed the erosion table. I think the Mugwump had a good time too. He did lame stuff like plant trees... I liked seeing the powerful water break dams and create mass carnage to everything downstream.

The Mugwump also got swimming lessons for his birthday. He's looking forward to a slightly larger pool. I think he's also looking forward to seeing something besides the grime at the bottom of the bathtub.

The boys really like the tent. I don't think the tent is quite big enough. If the boys ever ask me to sleep in the tent, I will have to call the giver of the tent and ask that she sleep in the tent instead of me. You see, I am over four feet tall and therefore do not fit in the tent. Thank you Grandma, the boys love it. Well, the Mugwump still loves it, Six-pence has become a little suspect since older brother learned that if you zip younger brother inside the tent, he doesn't know how to get out. Little brother doesn't like that.

Thanks to all for a wonderful birthday for the Mugwump.

As for the "adults" in the family, we weed the garden with every spare moment. It's amazing, by the time I am done weeding all the way through, the morning glory have almost completely taken over the part that I started with. This is different than I envisioned. I thought I would weed it once and then pull the occasional weed just to stay caught up. Pretty soon the squash will catch up and we will no longer have a morning glory problem. Then I will have to figure out how to keep the squash from overtaking the rest of the garden.

You know, I think that a garden update is a post in itself, but I've got other posts on the burner. Stay tuned the next post will be a good one. We're making changes to a simpler, lower impact life and my wife wanted to make the big steps first.

Bikes as transportation

Bikes are not toys, bikes are a valid form of transportation. This is sort of a funny topic for me. I am one of the greatest proponents for using bikes as transportation, yet I often unintentionally give it "toy" status.

I bought brake pads the other day. It took me weeks to finally get around to buying them. I was wearing real thin on the old pads and the replacement was overdue. Why did it take so long? Because I didn't want to spend the money (~$10). Sure it's what I use to stop and that's important, but I could use that $10 for lots of other things (like watermelon).

I feel bad for even hesitating to buy break pads. What makes the situation even worse is that when the car needs gas I don't hesitate to fill it. Why the hesitation? I think it stems from the fact that my bicycle has always been a recreational venture. Now I commute and it is my transportation, yet cycling is still in the "recreate" category. That needs to change so that I can keep my bike in safe working order (and let the car fall into a state of neglect). OK, I'll maintain the car, but begrudgingly and only after the necessary repairs have been made on my bike (as well as my wife's and the kid's trailer).

The irony of this is that I know the consequences of thinking of a bike as a second class form of transportation. I know that most of the incidences that I have with cars are due to the fact that I am considered a second class vehicle when I'm on the bike. In the perspective of most motorists, bicycles are for recreating so cyclist certainly aren't in a hurry and therefore should yield the right of way to motorist... ALWAYS. Is it deeper than that? Are cyclists seen as people who can't afford a car and therefore "lower class" than those who can afford a car and gas? Based on what people yell at me from car windows, they don't think I belong on the road, even when I follow every law in the books. They think I'm playing on my toy.

For whatever reason, most motorists feel that they are in a hurry, but certainly the guy on the bike isn't, he must be recreating. Guess what, I'm in a hurry too, my bike is my car. Not only do I need to get to work, but I like to maintain my pace so that I can get worthwhile aerobic exercise.

So I did a little research on cycling (OK, I lied, it just happened to be in a book I am reading). A car with one passenger takes 1860 calories to go one mile (everyone knew that gas had calories, right?). One mile walking will consume about 100 calories. One mile on a bike takes about 35 calories. Bicycles are one of the most efficient forms of transportation available, consuming one third the energy of walking and 53 times less energy than driving a car. As far as fuel efficiency goes, the bicycle is far superior. It is time that we think of a bicycle as a legitimate vehicle and means of transportation and not a toy used by second rate citizens to recreate.

Freedom

OK, I'm back on track. This is sort of a continuation of the post I did on free stuff.

Just as Free stuff that you pick up isn't free, freedom isn't free. I know, everyone has already read the bumper sticker that says, "Freedom isn't free", but I'm looking to make a bigger point here. But while we are on the topic, I think it's important to recognize the importance of the military's accomplishments in keeping us free. Without the revolutionary war we (speaking of those who live in the US) could still be under British rule. Without WWII we could be speaking German.

While I was in France I was having dinner with an older couple. We were talking and I mentioned that my grandfather had served in WWII. Actually both of my grandfathers were in WWII, but on opposite sides of the world. My grandfather who was in France, was in the Navy. He took loads of army troops up to the beach during some pretty major battles. He remembered dropping off loads of troops and watching many of them get shot before they could get to safety. These men sacrificed everything. The man with whom I was having dinner started to cry and asked me to tell my grandfather, "thank you". I did that before Grandpa passed away, but that experience remains vivid in my head. That man I had dinner with knew the cost of freedom. He knew that my grandfather was willing to pay the price of freedom along with many other soldiers who weren't even defending their own land.

While I think highly of our military and the sacrifices they are willing to make for our country, that wasn't the direction I wanted to go with this post. The freedoms that come with a "free" democracy demand that ordinary people take responsibility and work hard to maintain their freedoms. I was reading over at simple perspectives and started thinking about her call for people to take action on the immigration policies being considered in the U.S. Beyond military service, that is a cost of freedom. Sure we have the freedom of speech so we can argue and have our own opinions, but more importantly the citizens of a democratic country must make their opinions known. Not just ranting on a blog or writing an editorial for a newspaper, but real communication to policy-makers. The source of our freedom (the constitution and our government) requires our participation in the process in order to maintain our freedoms. The freedoms that we have are of great value and are certainly not "free". They require our participation. So many people float along in the system and never participate in democracy. For them I suppose democracy is "free", but they are also leaving themselves open to having their freedoms taken away by not standing up for them.

I'm done ranting. Maybe next time I will talk about bikes again. I like bikes and I started this blog to talk about bikes. That could be a good step for me.

Update (4th Birthday)

First off, I want to make it clear that I didn't make the Euoplocephalus by myself. My wife helped every step of the way. OK, with the way most people use the English language it should be stated that I helped every bit of the way since she was really the one who did most of it.

This is the Mugwump with his Euoplocephalus. You can see the rocks that he added. After adding the rocks, the Mugwump noted that the Euoplocephalus looks "stoned". I thought it looked like a giant slug with spikes and floppy dog ears... Maybe stoned is a good way of putting it.
I would say that the Mugwump chose well. He went for the club of the tail of the Euoplocephalus. There may have been a full pound of sugar in the club of the tail. He did NOT finish the club and we will be taking the cake to the park on Tuesday to share with any innocent bystanders that don't know what they are getting themselves into.
Six-pence was involved in this whole thing. He likes to eat with a utensil in each hand. Notice the use of the fork. He holds the fork in his fist and then uses the fist to grab a handful of cake. I believe this is a primal instinct. Notice that if you were to try and take that cake away from him you would be stabbed by the fork. He's a genius. If there is anyone from Homeland Security that reads this, you need to wait a bit before recruiting him, he has a couple more skills to develop yet (like talking).... Or maybe he's just the one you are looking for.

The Mugwump turns 4!

Well, I said that my next post would be a continuation of the last. I lied. I need to do a family post and now is a good time. The continuation will come next time.

Yesterday we had a party for the Mugwump. We asked him what he wanted to do for his birthday months ago and he said that he wanted to climb "Y mountain" (that's the hill overlooking the town with a big Y on it). It's a steep hike of about 2-3 miles (I'm guessing, I really don't have a clue). So, for the Mugwump's birthday the Mugwump invited two of his friends (and their families) to go "hike the Y". All of the kids fared pretty well with just a little complaining. Although there wasn't much complaining from the parents, I think that there will be some sore parents. Especially Jacob who spent the entire descent jogging behind his 18 month old, holding on to the back of her shirt so she didn't fall (that meant he was leaning over and jogging. That would have destroyed me.

At the Y, we had cupcakes, sang Happy Birthday and played around on the rocks. Nobody brought gifts (as the invitations indicated). There was no clean up (although we packed out our trash). We got to spend time with our families and with our friends (grown and young). I could think of no better birthday party. Brian, Nate, Reid, Kevin, AJ, and Jenn you need to fly out for my party in June. We'll climb something bigger since I"m older. (I'm not anticipating that anyone will show up for my birthday, but that's OK).

The highlight yesterday was asking the Mugwump what he was excited about for his birthday (which is actually today). He said that he was excited to get a horsey. I was a little taken back because my mom got him a toy horse and a pass to go to a local park where he'll be able to ride a pony. How in the world did he guess that? So I asked how he knew he was getting a horse and he told me that he wrapped it himself, it was the present he was getting for himself. Sure enough, it's in the pile. The Mugwump did have to explain to me that really it was a stuffed bear, he's just pretending that it's a horse.

Yesterday my wife and I spent some time making a cake for his birthday (I thought we climbed Y mountain so that we wouldn't have a mess to clean up... Oh well). The cake that the Mugwump chose was shaped like a Euoplocephalus. Do you have any idea how hard it is to make a cake shaped like a Euoplocephalus? Do you have any idea how embarrassing it is when your 4 year old can say Euoplocephalus and you can't? Anyway, I won't describe the cake making process, I think the pictures are more telling. Just 7 pounds of sugar and a couple of pounds of margarine and you can shape it into almost anything. I think we may have added flour too, but I'm not sure.

Free

I was going to have a family post today, before I got into my next ideas for blogs, but another blog inspired me to get caught up. So my next post will sort of be related to a post by Peddlinshutterbug. I'll put up another link when the relationship will be more obvious.

I manned a booth yesterday for the SLC bicycle collective at the Utah state PTA convention. I was "selling" free bike ed classes for kids (or adults, although at the PTA meeting the focus was for kids). Of course I wasn't the only one there with a booth handing out fliers and stuff, there were several large rooms full of vendors selling things, and giving things away. I'll come back to my part of the meeting, but I want to focus on the "free" stuff that almost every booth had to give away.

Nothing you pick up at a booth is free. Nothing. I think of the trade shows where you get little rubber balls that light up when you bounce them and the lights you can put on the valve stems of your tires that light up when they are moving. You go to the booth, you don't give them anything and they give you a product, it seems to be free. It's not.

First off, do you think that the toys given out by Kraft or other food manufactures are purely from the goodness of their souls? Or, do you think that you pay for those stupid little toys every time you buy products made by that company? Is the toy worth the extra that you pay for the product? I don't think it is.

Now you're thinking, "Sans, I got you, because I don't buy stuff made by that company, and in fact the advertising doesn't influence me, I just get the free stuff and other people pay for it". (You shouldn't think in run-on sentences like that). First off, you're wrong, advertising is persuasive in ways that people don't recognize. That is the reason companies spend millions upon millions of dollars on advertising. Second, even if you don't take the stupid little toy and you don't buy the product, you still had to pay for the product, in a roundabout way. That toy was produced using electricity, plastics, and electronic equipment. The electricity and plastics used in the production let off gases that influence global warming. Additionally the factories (or the power plants providing the factories electricity) will produce gasses and particulate matter that leads to asthma, cardiovascular disease, lung disease and other health issues. Finally the plastic toy will end up in a landfill where it will not decompose for thousands of years. That's probably a good thing since once the plastic does decompose it will allow the heavy metals in the electronics to leach into ground water.

So that "free" item that you take from the booth contributed to global warming, air pollution, contaminated ground water and the filling of landfills. I don't think that's free for anyone. In fact that is VERY expensive for all of us. Even the simple fliers that I was handing out took trees, energy, and chemicals to produce. That has an impact on the environment.

Am I saying that you should never take another trinket or flier from a booth at a fair? Well, that certainly would be nice, but I don't think it's necessary or realistic. If you don't need it, don't take it. Resist the "oh, little Johnny will really like this". Yeah, he might, but it will be short lived and if you don't take it, they won't make as many in the future. You might even save on some of your bills in the future (or let some really rich guy have just a little more). If you come upon a booth that has something that interests you and that you will certainly look into at a later date, take some information.

So how do I justify my participation in this event? First off, I wish I had said more to people about only taking stuff if they were interested. So many people came by, took a few things because they were there and then left. Will they ever look at them again? Maybe some of them, but the majority of my fliers will end up in the trash, or if we're lucky the recycling bin (this is Utah, most will end up in the trash). Those who will look at them again may sign up to have a bicycle safety class taught at their school where kids will be introduced to safe cycling (and their parents may even catch on). I hope it makes a difference. I hope it makes kids more confident in riding a bike to school. I hope it makes people realize that a bicycle is more than a toy, it's a form of transportation.

Don't pick up free stuff just because it is free. It is more than is worth paying.