April 23, 2012

More Can, Less Can't

A few years ago, I included the goal "More 'can', less 'can't" in my list of New Year's resolutions.  I felt that I had been saying "can't" a lot over the years; that I had not been imaginative enough in finding solutions to feel happier and more fulfilled.  This feeling was compounded by the third party in my marriage: my husband's company, which was fully in control of where we would live and for long.  A feeling of powerlessness permeated our efforts to make major decisions and to plan our lives.  Intricately linked to that was my slowly-dawning realization that my professional path would be forever and greatly altered each time we moved for my husband's work.

The minor victory of having been partially in control of our move out of New Orleans left me wanting more of that feeling.  Being able to go back to school around that time to learn how clothes are made then increased it.  And so, more "can" trickled in.

During the first couple of weeks in Calgary, sitting on the floor while we waited for our moving truck to bring our belongings, we wondered aloud what would happen if we left the company and had to get back to the U.S. without their assistance.  Again, "can't" snuck in.  We said "No way, that won't happen."  I said, "Whatever happens, I'm not moving us out of here.  I've had it with the moving.  Someone else will have to do it.  Surely any job you have next would offer a moving benefit anyway, right?"

April 17, 2012

Make Clothes, Not Scraps

Since I have been learning to sew, I have accumulated many scraps born from testing fits of patterns, from making mistakes, and from making garments.  I can't bring myself to throw them away.  It feels so weird, and counter-productive, to take pieces of brand-new fabric and throw them in the trash.  As a result, I have a pretty large drawer of scrappy bits.

I recently read a figure that 30% of all textiles get tossed as scraps in garment production.  Given that we currently produce three times the amount of textiles that we did thirty years ago, doesn't that mean that we are currently "scrapping" almost the full amount of textiles produced thirty years ago.  I'm sure that we can do better.

April 13, 2012

More Secession

In a recent post, I highlighted a radio clip which was a spoof of what it would sound like if Texas actually seceded from the United States.  In spite of that clip having been featured during drive-time news, I still imagined secession supporters to be kind of on the fringes, like survivalists, or people that think Newt Gingrich might make a good president.

However, I was proven wrong yesterday.  This guy, who was parked in front of my house yesterday, is so excited about secession that a bumper sticker just isn't a strong enough expression of his enthusiasm:

April 05, 2012

Republic of Texas

There is a lot to enjoy about living in Texas.  Most of it has to do with consumption and materialism, but there are some non-tangibles as well.  The lack of state income tax is nice, shopping is abundant, and food is often yummy and always well-spiced.  The people are super friendly and kind, and I love the balmy humidity and the screechy, tropical-sounding Houstonian birds.

However, sometimes it is too much.  Sometimes, when I am driving and I pull up next to some jackhole with a bumper sticker on his car that reads "Secede", I get a little fired up.  Since that just happened to me last week, it was timely that this spoof news piece played on the radio a few days ago.  Have a listen (or a read, but it's funnier when you hear the voices) to Lone Star State of Mind: Could Texas Go it Alone, if you didn't hear it the first time.