Category: low-footprint living

I am an educator so it’s part of my work to keep plugging away. I have had people block me on Facebook, and there are a person here and there who I ended up having to block. But for the most part I’m just continuing my work which means being connected with lots of different people. Continuing to try to educate people on the connections between capitalist/colonizer society, the climate crisis, and why everybody is feeling so economically crunched.

Fortunately most all of my close real-life friends, and my immediate family, are mostly on same page politically.

(A question someone posted in one of my groups.)

I am not going to say I’m confident. But as a Boomer I’m working to keep a level head because the young people & more vulnerable people need me to. It may sound strange but it feels like I’ve been training for this my whole life, as a child I always read stories about people living under oppressive regime.

And before this, my whole life, as a person raised by her parents to love & protect ecosystems, I feel like I have always been in training for the climate crisis.

And really, it’s all connected. For example, every drop of gasoline we can conserve is one drop less that goes to feeding oppression. Same goes for other consumption, because energy goes into everything. Many experts have written about the connection between energy demand and wars, fascism etc.

I am sort of a prepper, but in a community way. And I share tips and info with people to help everyone get prepped for whatever.

In a “help wanted / seeking jobs” group that I follow in my local area, people commonly laugh-react posts from job-seekers who need accommodations. Whether from a disability, or childcare issues, or what have you.

Today I saw the post below:

Looking for part time work between hours of 630am and 2pm any day of the week. Limitations: can’t lift heavy things or do physical work requiring strength or endurance, need the ability to sit or stand when I need, not interested in being a caregiver for elderly, children, or animals. I am allergic to most animals. Also need a quiet workspace. I need frequent breaks from conversational/social interactions due to my Autism or a quiet and low social job overall. Part-time office work maybe between 8am and 2pm? Currently no positions available unless someone knows of something?

My response:

Honestly these conditions do not sound unrealistic at all. It sounds like the majority of office jobs I’ve ever worked. What the people laugh-reacting this post might want to consider is that these conditions might not be unreasonable, period. Even if a person doesn’t have disabilities.

Could it be that (for example) even retail workers deserve a chance to sit down when they need it? In some countries, cashiers actually get to sit on a stool their whole shift if they want. It’s no impediment to working the register and interacting with customers.

We are moneymaking units for the owners! Workers make the profits for the owners. Something to ponder!

Next time anyone is tempted to put down a person with disabilities for being up-front about their needs & constraints, consider that their requests might be helping us all. Maybe all of us need to stand up for more reasonable working conditions that don’t result in blowing out our backs and hips and knees, unnecessarily interrupting our mental processes, and so on.

I will be so happy when nobody even notices or cares that I arrived by foot or bicycle to a meeting, gathering, or other event.

As an environmental activist and social-justice activist, I am working for a world where non-car-ownership is totally unmemorable and commonplace — because everybody has access to their daily needs without having to own their own car.

Right now we basically have a system
of forced car ownership in most parts of the USA. It’s a regressive tax on the poor, and a burden on the nondriving public as well.

The most dysfunctional example I can think of of this, is our local nonprofits’ food distribution events, where the flyer says you must show up in a vehicle; no walk ups. So many problems with that. Starting with maybe the person would be able to afford food if they weren’t forced to own a car. I speak from experience. A big part of why I never had to seek any food assistance during my “lean years” was that I was not burdened with the expense of car ownership.

(And not incidentally, it’s also really a burden on the driving public too!)

And also a burden on older people who are getting to where they probably shouldn’t drive but they still kind of have to.

I always cringe when people brag about how their elderly parent or grandparent is still driving, like that’s a good thing. If I’m going to be the stud-ette of my nursing home, I’d rather have it be because I was a successful advocate for public transport and walkability.

PS. This gives me an idea! Anyone who wants to join me in caravaning by bicycle (or foot) to upcoming events, give me a shout! There is safety in numbers, I know a lot about riding (and walking) safely, and this weekend the moon is going to be quite bright as it will still be almost full that evening.

PPS. For more content about environmental issues etc., please like and follow my FB page DEEP GREEN book by Jenny Nazak,

Someone in one of my ladies’ groups suggested joining & supporting ACLU.

Good suggestion. In recent years I also became a life member of Veterans for Peace and NAACP.

Social justice, climate justice, demilitarization … It’s all connected.

Commented in response to a post in one of my women’s groups expressing hurt & confusion about the blue bracelet thing:

What may feel like hate and division, is actually constructive critique and an opportunity and necessity for us to evolve in our understanding.

I know a lot of us white women are feeling confused right now. The best advice I can offer is to follow Black women who are feminist and anti-racist educators.

Are you on TikTok? If so, you are welcome to friend me. Most of the videos I repost are from Black women who are feminist anti-racist educators.

If you’re not on TikTok, there’s a book called Hood Feminism, by Dr. Mikki Kendall. This book answers a lot of the questions and confusion I’m seeing from you and other fellow white women in this group.

There are many other books as well. We can and will totally get on the same page!! But we have some learning to do. There are so many resources out there to help us catch up.

You are welcome to friend me on Facebook if you like as well.

PS. One of the characteristics of “whiteness” is a fear of and aversion to confrontation. So we shy away from it. And therein lies a lot of our problems. Because then anytime we try to talk straight with each other it sounds like punishment or hate. We can overcome this conditioning. It’s sort of like exercising a muscle. Also, awareness is key.

One educator I’ve learned a lot from is Desiree B Stephens. She’s on TikTok and also has a substack. Things I used to take personally, I realize are just a part of our cultural programming and can be changed. This is a big part of our work!

I wrote the following just now and one of my women’s groups, in response to people who are feeling very vulnerable and lost.

Yes! We get ourselves resilient. Physically and emotionally. We can think of each of ourselves as one node making up a resilient net of protection.

As much as possible, we take care of our health using highly accessible plants we can grow in our yard. Aloe; greens; herbs. Fruit trees. We teach our neighbors how to be resilient. We collect rainwater so we are never have to be dependent on municipal systems. We share with our communities. Share knowledge, and share resources.

Emotional resilience. A big part of this is just finding our people. Yes, therapy and so on can be needed as well. But a lot of times, what we really need is just a few people right near us who we can talk to. Find those people. IN WALKING DISTANCE please. We all need people who are right around us. (I don’t know how any of you have survived without this. But now is the time to change it.) They are there. They are looking for you too.

Here’s a book recommendation. This was written by one of the leaders of one of the climate-resilience groups I belong to, Deep Adaptation, but it is very very deeply applicable here in this situation as well.

Eye of the Storm, by Terry LePage.

Also, definitely follow Sharon Astyk If you aren’t already. Sane, grounded wisdom on everything from dealing with pandemics to planting a garden to taking care of the people around you.

Also, check into the old traditional ladies networks that women used to use in wartime. Knitting circles, gardening clubs, etc. You don’t have to be a champion needleworker either.

Now that I’m in my 60s, I find it easier and easier to go under the radar as a harmless old lady who’s into plants and beads. There’s a lot of power in being in a segment of society that’s not considered desirable or worthy of attention.

Anyone here is welcome to send me a friend request as well. Some of us already now connected and getting ready to arrange local meetups. But no matter where in Florida you live, feel free to send me a friend request.

Pirate-UP, ladies!! (If you haven’t yet listened to Rachel Maddow’s very practical talk, where she refers to tapping into our inner pirate, you are in for a treat, go watch it — It contains nuts-and-bolts next steps for defending democracy.)

And (separate comment in response to same post):

I think that if Social Security gets eliminated, all of us will be in a similar boat and there will be deflation. I am a Boomer and have no kids. But I could live on the small income I get from my freelance work (writing, speaking, teaching, art) and from the rent that my housemates pay.

One thing I suggest my fellow Boomer women consider doing, if we haven’t already, is pay off our mortgages. Even if we have to cash out our 401(k)s to do it.

It’s amazing how little I can live on with a paid-for house.  And there’s a certain deep feeling of security.

I do a lot of other thrifty things too, like I arranged my life so I don’t need to own a car. And I can get along without electricity other than what’s needed to charge my phone.

All the little things can help us feel more secure, and be more secure and resilient. So that we can be in a better position to protect the vulnerable people in our lives.

As a white woman who is post-menopausal, and has some basic low-tech survival skills (which I teach to my community, those who will listen), I feel a lot safer than people in a number of other categories. So I am looking out for those people.

And in reply to someone who said she’s getting her handmaid costume ready:

I am souping up my green eco-warrior uniform, which I wear as an eco activist/educator, and adding sort of a sassy old lady pirate vibe ha ha. (the eco warrior uniform is an old army jumpsuit I thrifted, and then cut/sewed into a jacket and pants and embellished it.)

And regarding one commenter’s concerns that Social Security will be abolished:

I think that if Social Security gets eliminated, all of us will be in a similar boat and there will be deflation. I am a Boomer and have no kids, But I could live on the small income I get from my freelance work (writing, speaking, teaching, art) and from the rent that my housemates pay.

One thing I suggest my fellow Boomer women consider doing, if we haven’t already, is pay off our mortgages. Even if we have to cash out our 401(k)s to do it.

It’s amazing how little I can live on with a paid-for house. And there’s a certain deep feeling of security.

I do a lot of other thrifty things too, like I arranged my life so I don’t need to own a car. And I can get along without electricity other than what’s needed to charge my phone.

All the little things can help us feel more secure, and be more secure and resilient. So that we can be in a better position to protect the vulnerable people in our lives.

As a white woman who is post-menopausal, and has some basic low-tech survival skills (which I teach to my community, those who will listen), I feel a lot safer than people in a number of other categories. So I am looking out for those people.

In response to a comment from someone saying they had just joined ACLU and suggesting others do the same:

Good suggestion. In recent years I also became a life member of Veterans for Peace, and NAACP. Social justice, climate justice, demilitarization … It’s all connected.