What I’ve Learned from Jack Sparrow (No, really)

Wherever we want to go, we'll go. That's what a ship is, you know. It's not just a keel and a hull and a deck and sails, that's what a ship needs but what a ship is... what the Black Pearl really is... is freedom. – Jack Sparrow

                               
                                  (Sidenote: Clicking on any of the pictures in this post will bring you to their original source, and some really good reads.)


It’s no secret Zach and I are into alternative ideas when it comes to living. We grow our own veggies in containers, we collect rainwater, we dream of someday living in a house under 800 square feet that we built ourselves, using reclaimed materials and perhaps straw bales. Most recently, and by recently I mean yesterday, Zach really wants to raise chickens. (I reminded him we need to take baby steps.)

Basically we’re hippies, but only in an environmentally friendly, non-consumeristic, “let it be” kind of way.

I’ve been following the tiny house movement for years, since I was in high school. The interesting thing about tiny houses (or small dwellings in general) is how hard it can be to obtain one, and I don’t mean the cost. I’m talking about the red tape.

There are many reasons to build small and I’ll probably explore them in another post someday. There are several companies who build beautiful small structures. There’s an entire philosophy behind the tiny house movement and the reclaimed materials movement (and both complement each other extremely well) so it’s worth exploring for yourself. But what stops many people joining in?

Zoning.

                        

In the 1950s, the average house size was around 900 square feet. Many people would balk at that kind of size for a house but think again. I’ve lived in some very nice 900 square foot houses, very comfortably. Most people live in the same amount of space right now. It’s called an apartment. However, few people dream of building an apartment sized house. Houses are supposed to be big, open, expensive. Houses are supposed to mean that you’ve arrived, you own your home, you can join the ranks of successful Americans who are living the dream.

The average house size today is somewhere between 2,400 and 2,500 square feet. Yes, that’s more than twice what it was in 1950.



Two questions for you:

Do we really need that much space?

What about the people who are less interested in arriving and more interested in becoming?

Think carefully.

Tiny/small houses are not for everyone. But zoning laws in most states force everyone to build huge if they want to own their own house. It’s not constitutional, and the reasons behind it are strictly mercenary. Bigger houses means more money for a lot of people. Not homeowners, other people.

Even if you dream of owning a huge house someday (and you have every right to) wouldn’t you agree that those of us interested in owning a home under 1,000 square feet should have that right as well? That the only say in your house the government should have is to make sure it’s structurally sound, not dictate how large it should be?

Building a tiny house should be a viable option, just like starting your own small business is. It takes work, and you’re not in it for “The Man”, you’re doing it for yourself. You have the freedom to do it, and it gives you freedom in return, to live the life you want. Life on your terms. (That’s where the Jack Sparrow quote comes in. Wherever we want to go, we'll go. That's what a tiny house is, you know. It's not just a roof and a floor and windows and walls , that's what a house needs but what a house is... what a tiny house really is... is freedom.)

                            

Tiny houses and small dwellings are not shacks. Most of them are beautiful, hand crafted, intentional homes built by people who want to live out their ideals.

                          

There is a petition to get the federal government to reform the zoning laws and allow homes under 1000 ft. to be built. In this economy, it could potentially help a lot of people live their dreams.

http://wh.gov/nBE

Please follow through to the petition and sign. Tell your friends, link to this post, get the word out. And while you’re at it, if you’ve never paid attention before, check out the tiny house movement. Google it. You might be surprised, and inspired, by all the things you find.

Guidelines for Holi Virgins

Today is the Holi Festival in India and all over the world. Holi, otherwise known as the Festival of Colors, is a Hindu festival celebrating the coming of Spring and the triumph of Good over Evil. It is celebrated by people throwing brightly colored powders and paints on each other and dancing. Generally all around good fun! (Did I mention there are water guns?)

My friend Becca and I went to a Holi celebration this past Saturday and had the time of our lives! If you've never been to Holi but you get the chance to go (major US cities with higher Indian populations will likely have celebrations) here are a few tips:

1. Wear as much white as possible, at least a white shirt. Whatever the color of your clothes, make sure you don’t care about them at all and plan on their being destroyed.

2. Leave jewelry at home, it won’t hurt them but I’d just rather not have to deal with it. DO bring sunglasses (I wish I had). Leave your bags in the car. Just bring some cash, your keys, and a picture taking device in your pockets.

3. Bring a towel for the ride home. (Hitchhiker’s is still right about this one.)

4. It doesn’t matter what age you are, where you come from, or what you look like, everyone is welcome. Unless you don’t intend to throw colors or dance. Then I’m not sure why you came and you’d be better off at home.

5. Hydrate.

6. Once you have your color throw it at anyone and everyone in a spirit of fun and community. Don’t forget to say “Happy Holi!”

7. DON’T throw colors in people’s face. Rub it on their face and in their hair with your fingers. I asked a girl who had yellow (a color I didn’t have “on” yet) if she would rub some on my face. She said sure and threw a handful in my face before I knew it. I guess I should have made myself clearer.

Like this. 

8. Try to keep your mouth shut as much as possible because the powder does get into your teeth and you’ll be spitting colors for a while. Also keep your eyes closed because it’s very uncomfortable getting it in your eyes (as when the girl threw it in my face). This is where sunglasses come in handy.

9. Dance. No one cares. Seriously. Just do what everyone else is doing (or channel your favorite Bollywood star) and have a good time.

10. Make new friends. Talk to strangers. Act the fool. It will be worth it and you will always remember it!

If I were really cool I would make one of those things they have on Pinterest but since I’m pretty thoroughly uncool I’ll just say it here:

What I think I look like on Holi:



What I actually look like:


                         



picture
picture this link has some amazing photos of Holi!
picture

For more photos of Holi just type "holi" into google and search images. You'll get the general idea. And for anyone who is wondering, yes, going to Holi for me (as a Bollywood fan) was like a nerdy kid going to a Star Wars convention. Best Day Ever!

Sip sip

In order for me to tell you the thought that occurred to me first I have to tell you a story.

The semester before Zach and I started dating he lived with 2 other guys in the dorms of his college campus (mind you it was a 2 person dorm, which meant one of them was sleeping on the floor). At the end of that semester between the three of them they had earned all of 6 credit hours.

Stop, think, do the math. Okay.*

The other night when we were talking about this he mentioned one of his roommates (an art major) did however manage to pull through with a 4.0, due to his dropping every class except sculpting and then acing it.

That’s when I made the flippant remark that the 4.0 shouldn’t really count because he was just an art student and the other two had real classes to go to (if only they had**).

About five seconds later I realized what I had just said. I never think I’m a judgmental person until I catch myself doing it (more than I like to admit). I never think the biases of society pertain to me until I find myself acting exactly as expected.

Oh no, not I. I’m above those sorts of things. I have an open mind. I watch documentaries. I read more books than I watch television shows. I don’t even HAVE a television I have a library card! I didn’t drink the Kool-Aid I just took a few sips. (What? It was red!)

But when did being an artist become a stupid, non-realistic, career only slackers try for? When did doing something as incredibly brave and challenging as creating put someone else lower on the food chain and allow the rest of us to feel entitled because at least we weren’t doing that?

So in the few seconds it took me to run through a much less elaborate analysis of my own bias I spoke up. “Actually I take it back,” I said, “I think maybe we’ve got it backwards. Because the rest of us were just sitting around in classes listening to lectures for the most part and making presentations of information we found in books. While art students were actually creating something. They had to come up with something on their own, work on it every day, and it had to be good and not just a copy. What they do is actually a lot harder.”

Zach thought about it. “Yeah, that’s true.”

                 

When I was a kid the first thing I remember wanting to be was an artist, or at the very least the person who gets to name the crayon colors. Somewhere along the way I gave up that dream for a more familiar path. I’m not saying I was meant to be a great painter. But if I had unknowingly allowed that prejudice to filter into my brain, what other areas of life might it be influencing? How I view other people? My students? Myself?

I mean, who wants to raise their hand and say “No I’m not creative and I look down on those who are.” Even if you don’t see yourself as creative don’t you still want to be?

And just in case, while we’re on the subject, have you been sipping the Kool-Aid too?

Think about it.


 picture

*This is my sneaky teacher side tricking you into doing a word problem muahaha.
**I would like to point out that Zach didn’t miss a single class the entire last two years he was in college. And it wasn’t because of me either it was because he decided to do something about it.