Simplicity, Priority, and mad ramblings of a woman who talks to herself

Not just that I blog to myself...it's all the time lately. I'm thinking my thoughts through in "blog" format and I don't even blog that much!!!

I've been thinking our life is off course. I'm starting to think it all lays in simplifying our life, getting back to the basics. Also the need to prioritize what is important to us. I'm thinking this in all areas. If you'd been in my kitchen this week you'd think Martha lived here, well till you saw the wreck the rest of the house is in. I've made sombrosa's for supper a few days ago (a deep fried homemade hot pocket type thing) I've been making a "soup of the week" lately. Last week was butternut squash...made from actual squash, bought at the farmer's market, that needed baking, not a can. I've also baked Pumpkins for pumpkin muffin's, 2 batches of pumpkin seeds, Cookies, homemade flat bread, and I'm contemplating trying actual real bread tomorrow. OH and tomorrow’s supper you ask? Potato soup (they had lots of potato’s at the farmers market this week). Did I mention I don’t cook?

For my birthday last week we went camping and Hubby's gift to me was to let me go nuts in the Amish stores near by....What did I buy? A quilt? a cedar chest? Nope....15 lbs of oatmeal, 5 lbs of whole wheat flour, a few jars of nummy stuff, and a produce cookbook (yes ME a cookbook). And to top it off Hubby told me the last people who lived in our house left a canner in our Shed. It's scary how excited this has made me!

I don’t know what brought this on. It could be turning 30, The idea of another move, The environment going to hell while all the politicians have their freaking ads out complaining about stuff that won’t matter when the earth blows up in 35 years? Who knows? But I think a lot of it was by thinking of what’s important in life. What’s really a “need” what’s a “want”. Is the want worth not only my money, but also the hours it takes me or DH working to make the money, the cost to the environment of manufacturing or producing it, and giving up other things the money could be spent on.

I think lately I’ve met one too many people who are concerned about what they look like, what brand of purse, or jeans, or car they buy, how prestigious the salon they go to is, etc. I couldn’t figure out why all this “chatter” was grating on me so till I was reminded by meeting a single mom at the park the other day who all she wanted was to be able to afford to rent a house so her kids could play outside more. I also happened across a documentary at the same time about the foster care system, and a few days later one on Africa. It reminded me that while we can’t afford (and I really don’t want) designer anything, we still belong to the “have’s” not the “have not’s” Despite the mom from my group saying there are “bad” area’s of Florence. For the record, the “BAD” area’s are like where we lived in Austin off Manchacha and Slaughter. Our current neighborhood is only slightly better.

So where does this all lead? I’ve vowed to start living more simply. Making more food from scratch (it’s healthier, cheaper and I don’t need to worry about DS getting more red dye or sugar then he can handle), buying as much as I can from the farmers market, or next year, growing my own. To stop eating out so much. We’re working on no more then every two weeks now. To not worry about how we’ll buy the next tank of heating oil, to not buy anything we don’t need without considering my above questions. To do my Yoga tape 3-4 times a week since while I never seem to do it, I do feel much better afterward. And last but not least……. My experiment of growing my hair out to see if I can really be comfortable in my own natural and very gray color. I think the last one will end shortly. Hey I can’t break off all ties with the real world.