TIME gets it

A story in TIME today is all about why this blog exists- to help us think about the impact of our purchases, and the ethical implications of where our money goes. Here's an excerpt:

America has always been a great laboratory of social innovation, from Ben Franklin's creation of the volunteer fire department and the lending library to the rise of online collectives like Wikipedia and Facebook. Usually it has been an invention, some innovation in commerce — the car, the lightbulb, the television — that has changed how we interact with one another as well as how we think of ourselves. We are again entering a period of social change as Americans are recalibrating our sense of what it means to be a citizen, not just through voting or volunteering but also through commerce: by what we buy. There is a new dimension to civic duty that is growing in America — it's the idea that we can serve not only by spending time in our communities and classrooms but by spending more responsibly. We are starting to put our money where our ideals are.

Read the whole article

I wonder if I can steal that tagline: "Putting our money where our ideals are"?

The downside to the industrial food system

As a kid, Anamaniacs was probably my favorite cartoon. The songs on their show were clever, catchy, and somewhat educational. The one that sticks in my memory is the Countries of the World song, during a phase where I was into the school's Geography Bee and even had a world map as a shower curtain. Yeah, I was a dork. Still am.

Anyway, this is a song I didn't remember but came across today:


Did you catch what they said at the beginning? There were a couple interesting phrases: "Modern food technology has the answer!" and "We got coupons!".

"Modern food technology has the answer!"
We'd like to think that the food we eat is wholesome, natural and straight from the farm or some warm, homey kitchen. As it is, much of what is sold in the grocery store is more aptly described as "modern technology" than as "food"! The barely-pronounceable chemicals listed in the song are very real- and in most everything we eat when we buy packaged or processed food.

"We got coupons!"
There are two sides to this. Many national food brands put coupons in the paper each week- and most the time, these coupons are for highly processed "food products" that are convenient, but not wholesome. This is not always the case. Coupons for dairy and produce products are out there. Organics companies are starting to offer coupons, too. The two lessons from this are:

• Not all coupons are for bad stuff
• Just because you have a coupon for something doesn't mean you should buy it.

Thinking about our food choices matters. Filling our bodies with whole foods rather than processed "modern food technology" will not only save the land from getting doused with chemicals and having its resources used to process and transport what we eat, it will save us medical bills down the road.

Living Inexpensively- and Justly!

My friend Heather has been working behind the scenes for months, and just last week finally launched Inexpensively, a site sharing deals and coupons locally and nationally. I especially like the local aspect to it- bloggers from specific states are sharing deals from those states- from their neighborhood. It makes the whole, big, national site feel a little smaller when I see my hometown zoo or grocery store featured.

And- EVEN BETTER- the site isn't just about saving money for your own family. When Heather started her previous site, FeedIndy.com, it was originally purposed to help people find deals so they can share with food pantries while still staying on-budget. Inexpensively has continued that same idea, and has an area labelled "Sharing" that will motivate readers to share with those in need. I love the concept, as I've written about before. It doesn't have to be an expensive undertaking, to help others.

Oh, and I should mention, I'm guest posting at Inexpensively today, and hope to in the future, in the Sharing category. Today we're talking about saving money on school supplies, to fill backpacks for kids that wouldn't otherwise have the tools to learn. I'm excited to fill a backpack for a middle schooler and a high schooler- so far I'm about half-done with the school supply lists and have spent about 80 cents, total, on supplies. Helping the less fortunate is affordable, and worth it. Check it out!

Ministry Spotlight: World Next Door

All around the world, things are happening. The marginalized, poor, and forgotten are suffering in anonymity. In our comfy home here in the West, in the suburbs, we see none of it. But what if we did?

My friend since high school, Barry, has a heart for these poor, marginalized and forgotten people. He's had the opportunity to spend significant amounts of time with them- in India, in Kenya, in the Ukraine, and even just down the road in Indianapolis. And, now? He wants to tell you their stories.

Enter World Next Door. World Next Door is a group of journalists and photographers that will publish articles and blog posts online recounting their stories of where God is working around the world. These stories will get back to those of us comfortable in our suburban bubble- and pop that bubble, or at least make our world a little bigger. And if we know what is going on around the world, it gives us the opportunity to care.

Want to find out more or get involved? Start reading the brand-spanking-new blog. Attend the rockin' launch party. Volunteer. Follow @worldnextdoor on Twitter. See Barry's interview on Amy's blog. Stay informed. Because "these people"? They are our neighbors.

Lost generation?

Yes, I found it via an email forward. Yes, I hate email forwards.

But, still, cool.

"Stranger in the House"

I really don't like email forwards.

Seriously, I usually immediately archive them and don't even read them. If they're particularly offensive or ignorant, I'll send a reply-all message with a Snopes article refuting it. This is my not-so-subtle hint to not send them anymore ;-)

My dad sent me one a week or so ago, though, that I LOVE. Here it is in its entirety.

A few years after I was born, my Dad met a stranger who was new to our small Texas town. From the beginning, Dad was fascinated with this enchanting newcomer and soon invited him to live with our family. The stranger was quickly accepted and was around from then on.

As I grew up, I never questioned his place in my family.. In my young mind, he had a special niche. My parents were complementary instructors: Mom taught me good from evil, and Dad taught me to obey. But the stranger...he was our storyteller. He would keep us spellbound for hours on end with..... Adventures, mysteries and comedies.

If I wanted to know anything about politics, history or science, he always knew the answers about the past, understood the present and even seemed able to predict the future! He took my family to the first major league ball game. He made me laugh, and he made me cry. The stranger
never stopped talking, but Dad didn't seem to mind.

Sometimes, Mom would get up quietly while the rest of us were shushing each other to listen to what he had to say, and she would go to the kitchen for peace and quiet. (I wonder now if she ever prayed for the stranger to leave.)

Dad ruled our household with certain moral convictions, but the stranger never felt obligated to honor them. Profanity, for example, was not allowed in our home... Not from us, our friends or any visitors. Our longtime visitor, however, got away with four-letter words that burned my
ears and made my dad squirm and my mother blush. My Dad didn't permit the liberal use of alcohol. But the stranger encouraged us to try it on a regular Basis. He made cigarettes look cool, cigars manly and pipes distinguished. He talked freely (much too freely!) about sex. His
comments were sometimes blatant, sometimes suggestive, and generally embarrassing.

I now know that my early concepts about relation ships were influenced strongly by the stranger. Time after time, he opposed the values of my parents, yet he was seldom rebuked... And NEVER asked to leave.

More than fifty years have passed since the stranger moved in with our family. He has blended right in and is not nearly as fascinating as he was at first. Still, if you could walk into my parents' den today, you would still find him sitting over in his corner, waiting for someone to
listen to him talk and watch him draw his pictures.

His name? We just call him 'TV.'

He has a wife now....We call her 'Computer.'

If you didn't guess, I'm pretty anti-TV- for a whole host of reasons, many related to justice or frugality. Maybe I'll get into that later.

For now- how does the Stranger fit into your home life? Your schedule? Your relationships?