perfect stocking stuffers!

December 3, 2019.Reading time 2 minutes.

i’ve been so busy crocheting away lately! but i’m super SUPER addicted and i’ve found that it’s a great meditation technique! which means you can have the perfect stocking stuffers for your loved ones!

i’m traveling on 10 december for SUMMER OF YOGA, so get your order in by 6 december! you can send me an email or message me on facebook!

scrubbies

i’ve been making star and flower shaped scrubbies. these are perfect for your bathroom or your kitchen! they are 100% cotton and can easily be thrown in the washing machine for use for YEARS! (no joke, my mom still has dishcloths i made for her about 12 years ago.) i’ve got multiple colors and if i don’t have ready made ones that you love, i can make them for you! just u$3 each!

and i’ve got tough scrubbies too! they are cotton on one side and a fun scrubby yarn material on the other side. you can use these on those tough pots and pans OR on your dry skin (they work great on my legs-which i don’t take great care really, so they get a true workout!!). these are u$5!

dishcloths

and you can add some color to your kitchen cleaning routine with these fun dishcloths! price depends on size, either u$3, u$5 or u$10.

make-up removers

do you want to remove even more single use materials from your bathroom routine? you can use these cotton re-useable make-up removers! only u$1 each!!

garlands

ready to decorate for the holiday season? i’ve got star OR snowflake garlands for you to use! u$10 each!

join me for SUMMER OF YOGA! you won’t wanna miss out on me trying to get strong enough for a handstand!

in 19 days…

November 21, 2019.Reading time less than 1 minute.

i’m leaving for australia!!!!!! and since i’m almost on my way back to the us so i can go to australia, i’m finally getting excited about it!

the first email for SUMMER OF YOGA is going to be sent in the next few days! so if you want to join, there is still time!

“jobless”

November 15, 2019.Reading time 3 minutes.

for 3.5 years, i haven’t had full time, permanent employment (you know, the kind that usually gives you health insurance).

for the first year, I was fine just taking some much needed time to myself. after living and working overseas for 9 years, i needed a mental health break. i also needed to give myself time to adjust back to american life.

then i started to look for jobs.

i’ve applied for SO many. it is a frustrating process to say the least. many times a human being isn’t even receiving your application. an algorithm is reading it and then sending it to the top of a list if you have all the keywords it is told to search for. most of the time, you don’t even get a ‘thanks for applying’ message. your resume and cover letter are sent into the abyss, never to be heard from again.

and while i was doing that, i was also doing small bits and pieces for different people. and working a few part-time jobs here and there. and have now started my own business, which is currently moving very slowly. and this, i just recently learned, is why i don’t count in the numbers.

you see and hear about america’s lowest unemployment rate ever in the news. and for a very long time, i felt like i was doing things ‘wrong’ because i was trying so hard and nothing was happening and i kept wondering where these jobs were?! well, because i do work i’m not counted in these numbers. so while i am struggling to earn enough to cover my expenses, i’m not considered ‘unemployed.’

but i refuse to let the system defeat me!

i’ve still been applying to ‘traditional’ jobs (you know, the ones that usually offer you health insurance). i’ve also been working on getting a fivvr account up and running, working for a few small new businesses just an hour or two a day and crocheting like crazy! it’s tough, but i’m trying to make it all work!

if you know of anyone needing some online/digital support (either with social media, website or even personal assistant stuff), let me know! If you see a job posting that you think sounds like me, send it over! And if you need any crochet dishcloths, scrubbies or snowflake garlands, I’m your girl!

for $10, you can join SUMMER OF YOGA! i’ll see ya on the paddleboard!

#jls2019

November 10, 2019.Reading time 2 minutes.

i’m waiting at the airport to get on my first of three flights to nigeria! why? because after months and months of preparations, the juliette low seminar is upon us!

for my non-guiding/girl scouting friends, juliette low started girl scouts in the united states over 100 years ago. in her honor, wagggs (the world association of girl guides and girl scouts) holds a leadership seminar for young women.

this year is even more exciting than a ‘regular’ jls. this year, they transformed 1 seminar into MANY seminars. we are spread around the world where over 700 young women will be attending!

and those 700 young women? they’ll be going home after the seminar and doing leadership activities with at least 100 girls. the effects of this 1 week will be felt for years to come!

i’ll be in nigeria!

i’ve never been, so it will also be a new country and experience for me! and we are delivering our seminar in french! (of which i know none!) we have 33 participants on our list, and hopefully they will all be able to attend!

i’m nervous, excited and will be challenged by not being in charge of logistics (of which i am usually in charge of!). i’m ready to meet young women from all over the world, learn their stories and hopefully motivate and empower them to go home and make a change in their own community.

join me during the SUMMER OF YOGA!

these snowflakes won’t make you cold

November 8, 2019.Reading time less than 1 minute.

i’ve been having so much fun making these cute snowflake garlands! so i’ve decided to take orders! i’ll make and send the week of the 25th of november! (when i get back from nigeria, still plenty of time for you to decorate for the winter holiday!)

they are approximately 45 inches (114 cm) long (when laid flat), have 4 large and 5 small snowflakes attached. the cord also stretches to about 60 inches (152 cm)!

they are $10 each, plus shipping if i need to send them to you!

just send me an email with how many you would like and your address! if you have any questions, just ask!

for just $10, you can join the exclusive SUMMER OF YOGA email list! join me in shavasana!

i’m a virtual assistant!

October 22, 2019.Reading time 1 minute.

i’ve had a revelation today. i’m a virtual assistant.

i support small businesses with whatever they need. this ranges from writing social media and email content to website updates to creating workshop booklets. whatever a small business might need virtual support with, i’m there!

and you know what that’s called? A VIRTUAL ASSISTANT!! why didn’t i realize this before?!

i hope using this phrase to describe my work will bring me a few more clients! but before i apply for positions with people and companies that are new to me, i want to reach out to you! my friends, family and readers:

do you know of anyone who needs a virtual assistant?

it could be for a single project or a few hours a week or even full time! i’m open to any possibility! want to see more of what i’ve done? check my work page out!

please do get us in touch!

Fasting

October 18, 2019.Reading time 4 minutes.

In 2010, I finished Peace Corps and moved to India. I also turned 26, which was a pretty big deal to me at the time. I wasn’t really looking forward to my birthday that year but decided that I needed to step it up and do something to get ready and excited for another year on Mother Earth!

The following are the brief blog posts I wrote at the time! I’ve also added in a few memories and reflections too!

I’m turning 26 this month. This is the first birthday in my whole entire life that I have not looked forward to my birthday with the fervor of an ultimate patriot cheering for his team in the Olympics. I usually spend the 2 months before my birthday reminding people that it is just around the corner. For my 24th birthday, I had a month long celebration that included 3 different countries, a tattoo, and a 111m jump off a bridge. I think that one birthday sums up my love of celebrating the day of my birth.

This year is a different story. I’m turning 26 and not looking forward to it. It will officially mark my downslide to 30. And I’m not ready for that.

I decided I wanted to prepare myself before the big day arrives. To do this, I am fasting for 9 days in celebration of Dessara, a Hindu festival in honor of the Hindu Goddess Durga.

Fasting here doesn’t mean no food. I eat curd (just like plain yogurt), fruit, and potato for lunch and a small meal at night. I will be strictly vegetarian. In addition to this food fasting for 9 days, I’m not drinking any form of caffeine. No coffee, no tea, no chai.

This is the part that I think will prove most difficult for myself. The last time I went one day without coffee, I had malaria. And it was literally only 1 day that I didn’t drink coffee. I made it but was too sick to actually drink it. But I’m ready for the challenge.

Day 1 is done. 8 more days…

I made it! I successfully completed my 9 day fast! And I did not cheat once! No coffee, no soda, no chai. Fruit for 9 breakfasts, fasting food for 9 lunches, and Indian food for 9 dinners.

I can safely say that I can give up coffee anytime I want. I’m actually drinking less than I usually do every day. Which will save me money if nothing else.

Now on to my next challenge. Turning 26.

While I jumped from before I start fasting to the very last day, a lot happened in between! Day 3 was the WORST!!!!!!!!!! That was when the caffeine withdrawal really kicked into over drive. I couldn’t do anything. jen sent me to bed because I was hopeless at being productive or even minimally engaged with whatever we were doing at the time. But after that nap?! I remember feeling like a brand new person and the rest of the fasting went pretty easy.

And I had a great 26th birthday, my first in India! I was working and we went to Alandi and Ishwari with the Tare (Community Programme Particiapants!). And at Ishwari, they made a cake and decorating for me! It was a great start to my ‘downslide to 30!’

join me for…

how is it made?

October 4, 2019.Reading time 3 minutes.

i’ve been doing a lot of crocheting recently and have been thinking and reflecting about how things are made. and how we decide to buy things. this all started when i tried to make and sell these very cute (at least in my opinion) crochet pumpkin decorations.

no one wanted to buy them. (my bestie kelsey did buy a set right away though! shout out to her for always supporting me!!) and it really got me thinking. why aren’t people buying?

i feel like the majority of people make decisions to buy things based on price. they’ll buy it if it’s on sale. they’ll buy it if it’s cheap. they’ll buy it if it’s a good deal! not many people make decisions based on how things were actually made and consider the price that things should be worth.

my mom bought some new tights the other day. she did need a few new pairs and they were ‘only’ 10 bucks. i told her that they probably weren’t made in the most ethical conditions if they only cost her 10 dollars. how are you supposed to make fabric, sew that fabric and then ship the final product to america AND still make a profit on something that’s $10?

it just doesn’t compute…

what about the people (like me) who work on sewing and crocheting their own creations? hand-making the items that they need?

for the last few weeks, i’ve been working on this amazing awesome super warm lap blanket. it took me a few hours a day, for a few weeks to make and finish it. time, talent and materials all went into this project!

while working on my blanket project, i’ve been thinking about making conscious consumer decisions. do i actually need this? was it ethically made? am i supporting local business? did someone hand make it?

it’s a challenge, i’m not going to lie to you. especially when it comes to medicine. i need allergy medicine to live. BUT you can only buy it in plastic bottles, that come in plastic packaging. and was probably made super cheap in a factory in india, where i would hope that people were at least paid a fair wage.

so i can’t buy 100% ethically, local and hand-made for every single purchase. but i can make conscious decisions about what and where i buy. and i can make sure that my purchases are directly supporting people! i encourage you to do the same, whenever you can!

how do you purchase? leave a comment below! let’s learn together!!

(and send me an email if you would like your very own set of cute crochet pumpkins!)

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#35til35

September 24, 2019.Reading time less than 1 minute.

in celebration of my 35th birthday, i have started an awesome project! #35til35 is a daily photo of each year of my life so far! you can follow on facebook or on instagram (but don’t need to have accounts)! i hope you enjoy the memories of my almost 35 years on mother earth!

climate change in the midwest

September 18, 2019.Reading time 4 minutes.

i’ve said for a very long time that we are living in the opening credits of a disaster movie. the opening credits are news clips of increasing earthquakes or severe hurricanes or massive tornados. in the movies, 10 years of news clips happens in 3 minutes. so all you can think to yourself is, ‘how did they not see that coming?!’

so because it’s all about the global climate strike today, i thought i would share a bit about climate change in the midwest.

first, a brief lesson

climate and weather are 2 different things. but they are connected! weather is what happens everyday. climate is the trend of weather over time. so the average weather over 30, 50, 100 or even 500 years is climate!

when weather becomes more severe or extreme, it is going to change the climate! 100 days of record high temperatures will increase the average weather over time. (that’s climate, remember?!)

how can we fix it? first, we have to figure out if what we (the humans) are doing is causing the change or not. GUESS WHAT?!?!!!! it’s us. and we’ve known this for YEARS!

greenhouse gases are increasing which is causing warmer temperatures. and like i mentioned earlier, more extreme weather days will change our climate. this is happening all around the world. every day. july was the hottest on record. ever.

carefreechrista

Category: musings