Freaks, Unite!

Here it is! The single (as far as I know) breastfeeding picture ever taken of me. Scandalous, I know. Try to reign in your horror over the blatant immodesty involved in breastfeeding.

Beware, users of plastic grocery bags and buyers of commercial personal care products.

There is a Hippie Underground.

They are out there.

WE are out here.

BWAHAHAHAHA!!!!!  (That’s my sinister laugh.)

I thought I was the ONLY ONE in my circle of acquaintance who believed in breastfeeding for at least a year.  But once I “went public” with that belief it turned out that most of the moms I knew felt the same way (in theory, if not always in practice).

I thought I was the ONLY ONE who wanted to use cloth diapers.  Now I know there are massive numbers of mommies wrapping baby bums in cotton (and bamboo and hemp and…. so forth).

I thought I was the ONLY ONE who was concerned about the reactions my baby was having to vaccines.  It turns out there are entire lobbying organizations that spend millions addressing the issue with the federal government.

I thought I was the ONLY ONE I knew who worried about recycling.  I started building a playhouse out of plastic water bottles and one of the ladies at church said, “I always wanted to try to build a boat out of milk jugs!”

I went public with my armpit vs. deodorant issues and found out that I know at least half a dozen women who haven’t used commercial deodorant in years.  I don’t remember any of them smelling bad at any point in all that time!

We all know that one hippie girl.  You know… the one that can look gorgeous and hip wearing a sari, even though she’s got pure white skin and grew up in Montana.  She looks better without makeup than the rest of us do after a full day at the spa.  She does yoga on a surf board, holding her rescued puppy, while communing with a dolphin and plays the bongos at her own wedding, while her husband does a ritual mating dance in her honor.

She’s so freaking COOL!

The rest of us just look like idiots if we try to do those things.

And no one likes looking foolish.

Except Jim Carey.  But he gets paid A LOT to be that way.

So we hide our hippie.

I say…

LET YOUR HIPPIE RUN FREE!

OK… maybe the hairy-legged, unwashed, pot-smoking, nudist within you should stay within. Far, FAR within.

But the part that loves music and laughter and peace and health and wholeness, not just for yourself, but for the whole world….  THAT part should be set free.

from http://www.sodahead.com

I say it in a silly way, but it’s really deadly serious.

You see, “normal” is what is done by the masses.  The mob defines what is “normal” at any given moment.

In the US, we live in a society where it is “normal” to eat pesticide covered, hormone-injected, genetically modified, chemically processed, foods but it is ILLEGAL in many states to buy raw milk or organic, untreated (ie. unbleached) poultry.

It is “normal” to feed a newborn infant a chemical formula made from dehydrated cow milk, dehydrated soy beans, and chemicals from a plastic bottle which leeches more chemicals into the drink, but it is considered rude and unsanitary to breastfeed in public.

It is “normal” to use disposable diapers, full of bleach and other harsh chemicals and then toss these waste-filled plastic storage containers into a landfill each day, but it is considered gross to use cloth diapers.

It is “normal” to let kids watch graphic depictions of sex and violence on television, video games and the internet, but it is considered sick to let your baby run around naked.

It is “normal” to use antibiotic soaps, household cleaners, and drugs despite 30+ years of warnings about “superbugs” and it’s considered weird to take a child to see a chiropractor or homeopathic practitioner.

It is “normal” to eat at a fast food place where each item is individually packaged in paper or plastic or foam, and thought to be unsanitary (and illegal by health department standards) to ask them to pack it differently, or in re-usable containers provided by the consumer.

I could go on and on but I’m sure you get the point.

As a society, our entire connection with nature has been distorted, if not altogether severed.  The result is a generation faced with terrible allergies, respiratory issues, chemical imbalances, and more.  Even worse, those kids are going to be left with a planet that has been badly abused.

When you “go public” with your Personal Hippie Freak Tendencies you show someone else that they are NOT the only one (breastfeeding, recycling, running fast, avoiding unnecessary drugs, etc).

The tide is slowly turning and people are becoming conscious of the fact that we cannot remain a consumerist society, dipped in chemicals and wrapped in bacon.

Bacon.  Wait.  I like bacon.  It’s so crispy and salty…. and  … oh… shoot… awareness… yes…. ok…

Sorry about that.

Anyway, the tide is turning, but not fast enough.  By being open about the “green” choices you make, you help others make good choices too.

How many more women would breastfeed if it didn’t seem “icky?”

How many more moms would cloth diaper?

How many people would buy organic, untreated poultry if they knew that millions were already eating it and NOT getting sick?

How many more people would ride bikes to work if it didn’t seem “nerdy?”

And you know what?

When enough people start making those choices, they will become the “normal” choice to make.

Cloth diapers will be easy to find in retail stores.

Raw milk will be on the shelf in the dairy aisle.

Cities will build more bike paths and less 14 lane highways.

Change “normal!”  Don’t hide your hippie! The world needs you!

Cover Page from Hippie Peace Freaks on Facebook. One of my favorite FB pages, by the way!

Fast Friday – Get Your Hippie On!

A Hippie Tip: All good hippie children should have dirty faces, smeared with fresh berry juice, in the summertime!

It is my intention to publish a post every weekday, but somehow Friday always falls by the wayside.  Friday is the day that I have the most work to do at my actual, paying, job so I tend to be there a little later than usual.  It’s also the day that we tend to spend running around the county doing errands, buying groceries and generally having fun.  While this is all very nice, it doesn’t leave much time for writing.  And I’m not nearly organized enough, at this point in my life, to have a store of posts written ahead of time.  So I’ve decided to introduce Fast Fridays.

I really do love alliteration.

Fast Fridays will be short posts that don’t require me to do a whole lot of research.  Since this one is already well in excess of 100 words I’ll just leave you with this:

It’s Friday!  It’s summer!  Put on some fabulous music, go outside barefoot in your most colorful clothing and enjoy this day on earth with the people you love most.  Get your hippie on!

Have a beautiful weekend, dear readers.

It’s Not Easy, Being Male

How could I not be in love with a guy that loves his girls like this?

Oh, I know.  Men may have an easier time finding a job or getting a raise.  They are less likely to be mugged on the street or harassed by their boss.  Most of them don’t worry too much about celluite or wrinkles.  Their bodies are never stretched beyond imagination by a little alien person growing inside and, likewise, they don’t have to breastfeed so their bosom doesn’t look like a couple of half deflated water balloons by the time their kids are old enough to walk.   If it did, they’d probably continue to proudly run around shirtless anyway.  They can pee pretty much wherever they want – including in a cup driving 70 MPH down the highway, and they never have to worry about a monthly visitor.

So you would think it would be oh-so-easy to be a man, right?

But consider  the role models of the past generation or two.  I mean the men that we, who are now well into adulthood, grew up watching on TV. Men like John Wayne and Clint Eastwood, Bruce Lee, Michael Jordan, Joe Montana, James Hetfield (AKA: The Metallica guy), and Slash.  Even the silly ones like Tim the Tool Man or Al Bundy.

Now, consider a man in his 30′s or 40′s, living in modern America.  Society (let’s face it: it’s not “society.”  It’s women.) expect them to be kinder and gentler than the men that preceded them.  We want them to exfoliate and moisturize.  But only with natural products, of course!  We demand that they help with the children and the household chores.  We expect them to be conscious of the environment.

Does Clint Eastwood rub lanolin on his face every night before bed?  Obviously not.  Have you seen the man?!?  Would Joe Montana cut his grass with an environmentally friendly tiny little reel mower that goes, “phft, phft, phft, phft” when he pushes it around the yard?  Ha!  I don’t know for a fact, but I’d bet he’s got a great big rumbling gas-guzzling riding mower.   Tim the Tool Man would NEVER scrap out his noisy leaf blower for parts! We all know that growing vegetables takes less toll on the earth than does raising beef cattle but I’d be willing to bet you wouldn’t catch James Hetfield eating Tofurkey on Thanksgiving.  I bet Steven Tyler doesn’t drive a Prius.

For many men, there is some sort of mystical link between the size and noise level of their many power tools and the prowess of the tools God gave them at birth.  And I’m sure this is nothing new.  I bet, before THE fight… you know… the one that got all the publicity… Cain and Able fought over who had the biggest, most powerful spear.

And so we, of the hippie mindset, are asking men to go against that which has been ingrained in their racial memory for thousands of years. And thousands… no… MILLIONS of men have responded admirably.  Out of love for their women and love for the planet they have eaten salads and tofu. They have pulled up their organic cotton big boy pants and driven their hybrid vehicles to work.

Hippie men…. I SALUTE YOU!  You are real men!  You are strong enough… confident enough in your male prowess to cut the grass with little mowers that say, “phft, phft, phft.”  You have refreshed yourselves with ice cold glasses of soy milk and you are healthier because of it.  You are strong and at-one with nature.  You are smart and sexy and we hippie ladies are loving it!

Handsome Hippie Hubby, this one’s for you.  I love you! And I think you are the smartest, funniest, kindest, strongest, most talented, bravest, sexiest guy I’ve ever known.  I am honored to be your partner in life.

Prove me right, ladies.  Share what makes your hot hippie guy some one special.

 

One Lazy Hippie

I think hippies are awesome.  I don’t mean the pot-smoking music lovers of the 1960′s.  I mean the new-millenium hippies.  Think about it… they want to save the earth and stop war and animal abuse and promote family and small business and all that good stuff.  Who doesn’t think those are great, worthy causes?

My family and friends call me a hippie.

Among my circle of aquaintances I am one of the few who is an adamant supporter of breastfeeding. I use cloth diapers. I put marigold tea on my little girl’s mosquito bites.  I wanted very much to have a waterbirth and railed against the universe when it became medically necessary for me to have a c-section.  Both times! (Ugh! I’m getting frustrated just thinking about it!).  I have an inordinate fondness for very long skirts and dresses (though, admittedly this has more to do with covering up my hamhockesque legs than with any kind of social statement).  They roll their eyes and (not always) patiently listen while I talk about the evils of the political establishment and I’m quite certain that they talk behind my back about whether or not I’ve had my children vaccinated. (I could tell, but it’s more fun to keep people guessing).  Those closest to me always knew I was a hippie at heart, forever wandering the earth in search of….. well…. I’m not really sure. But I had fun wandering! 10 years ago I married a guy who totally gets it.  When I have a bad headache he touches my feet and tones for me.  When I had trouble with my pregnancy he enrolled me in an energetic balancing program.  He’s the one who told me about the marigolds.

But I am lazy.  And, hippies of the new millenium aren’t.  I mean…. have you ever read what it takes to make a proper compost pile?  I did it my way and just ended up with a pile of old banana peels and egg shells that the neighbors complained about.

The only reason I use cloth diapers is because someone smarter (and no doubt more ambitious) than me invented “hybrid” diapers that allow me to flush the poo away instead of actually cleaning it up. Otherwise?  Ew! No! I wouldn’t deal with that mess!

My daughter went to preschool with a hippie mama who ONLY bought organic food.  I absolutely believe that organics are healthier and we should all be eating them.  But this lady?  She drove 45 minutes from our little rural community to buy it. She paid astronomical prices and bought produce in bulk so she could can or freeze everything herself.  When Red Baron comes out with a $4 organic frozen pizza that is sold at the local Walmart I will be all over that.  Until then, my efforts are half-hearted at best.

Which brings up another point.  Being a hippie in 1968 meant living in a park in Califonia and bathing less often.  These days it’s quite pricey!  Organics cost a fortune.  So do vaccinations, for that matter! Anyway…. that’s a blog for another day.  But being one of the 99% makes a lot of my decisions too.  I buy the $1.25 spaghetti sauce with High Fructose Corn Syrup (gasp!) instead of the $7 all natural stuff on the top shelf.

A hippie mama (in my mind) spends time with her child picking wildflowers and composing music to the beat of the bongos.  Mostly I watch tv with my kids.  Only educational tv though. Well. Mostly. But I have discovered a few cheap, easy ways to make a bit of an effort toward saving the earth, protecting animals, promoting family time, etc.  And, let’s face it, if we all made just a bit of an effort, wouldn’t it make a huge difference?

So, now I have a blog and I hope to share all my lazy hippie tips. And maybe… just maybe… we can save the earth, promote love and peace AND have time left over to watch Glee.  Uhm… I mean, educational television.