love you like i've never been hurt before

I wonder that too. I wonder if we live in a bubble where these types of goals are considered totally out of place and impossible for most Canadians, or even North Americans.

I understand that perhaps we West Coasters have it easy - that these products are so available to us - but if they could, would they?

we are working hard at reducing our footprint here in coastal north carolina. sadly, we are the exception, not the rule, it seems.

it would be next to impossible to eat a 10 mile diet here. well, i say that without really investigating it. but i feel we would be eating a lot of eggs, collard greens and shellfish.

I was just reading a website this morning about the 100-mile diet and it really spoke to me. I used to work at locally-grown (producer only) farmers markets but suburban living has gotten me used to the neighborhood grocery store. your post was timed well, i'm going to give some real though to getting my family to eat more local foods. i'm also working on getting my home more eco-conscious, beyond the weekly recyclables.
good posting!

Hi Jess - I've commented before but mostly lurk. This post speaks loud and clear to me, a SAHM of three kids in resource rich northern Alberta. Reducing our footprint is practically a full time job in itself, but the payoff? Three kids who are learning to step lightly. Good for you for making the effort and teaching the kids this, when we all know disposable and replaceable takes much less work.

Living on the east coast, VA, our area has a high population of "hippies" who have thought and bought (or not bought) this way for years (over a decade for me, personally). Many are thankful that the rest of the world finally seems to coming around.

P.S. I became a full convert during my single parent waitress time, too. Out of necessity we became a healthier, smarter, less impact on the universe type family. So glad that something good came out those hard years.

We live near Amish communities in the Midwest.(Missouri, Illinois, Indiana) They seem to prosper living this low impact lifestyle. I am trying to learn from that. Grains grow, meat grows, canning veggies in the summer, local beekeepers, making local fruit jelly. I learn new ways each year. I love to read and hear stories from other people.

I think what Ada said puts the finger on it for me (huh?)
Meaning: I would if I could but a lot of that stuff isn't as easily accessible or affordable out here. Hemp pants are $40 and that's not even organic. Clothing all of us as such would be ludicrously expensive. I try to buy as much organic produce as I can and have lofty plans to turn a LOT of the yard into garden to grow more myself but again, there are limitations in what's in stores and what can grow around here. The meat is available, again, at very high prices. My mom is really into doing the same and she's finding local producers and we plan to go in together to buy meat and huge bags of organic rice, etc. Unfortunately, the farmers market here is only open in the summer.
We don't have a lot of money right now, so we do a lot bulk shopping, which I love. Lower prices overall and less packaging but more often than not, it's from distant sources.
I guess I do what I can with what's available. I daydream about living somewhere that it was all much more accessible or some sort of shift that will bring the accessibility to me.

Unfortunately in Ontario, the recycling program isn't nearly as extensive, and inclusive as the one on the Island. That being said, with 5 of us, we still manage two bags of garbage a month. We compost, and there will be an extensive veggie garden that will feed us through next year (if the snow ever stops!). We also utilize the sewing machine in order to fix clothing. With kids around, thats pretty much a necessity I think, even if it is a largely forgotten one. I actually went to an Environmental college (in Ontario), so the Ecological footprint is always forefront in my mind. So, be heartened that it isn't solely West-Coast.

I was compelled to make my 2nd delurking comment -- I was wondering if this was a long-overdue world trend or whether I was feeling more compelled to the "living simply" movement as I near the end of my 30's. I look back on how much I've wasted, in terms of money, fuel and just "stuff" that now feels meaningless, and how much I've contributed to the environmental waste problem (and having a kid who I'd swear in retrospect brought a whole bunch of stuff and extra packaging material with her right from the womb!), and I'm appalled. Anyhow, you are very much not alone; I have come across many folks who are working to make these same kinds of changes in their lives. It's like a double-bonus that conservation saves both the environment and your bank account, isn't it?

Now if I can only get us to the one can of trash per month part... There was a really compelling interview on NPR that aired a few months back here (Chicago area, US) about a woman that carried all of the trash she generated with her everywhere she went for a month (maybe even longer, can't quite recall). Talk about raising one's consciousness...