Project 333: The Capsule Wardrobe – Sinanju Connection

Posted on October 5, 2011 | 1 comment

One of My Shirt & Tie Combos

Ever since I read the first thirty or so Destroyer books back in the ’80s (what can I say?  Sapir and Murphy ain’t Tolstoy, but Remo Williams kicked ass) I’ve toyed from time to time with idea of an incredibly simple wardrobe.  For those of you who haven’t read the books, Remo is a master of the fictional martial art known as Sinanju, and has a closet containing just 5 pairs of khakis and 5 black t-shirts.

Remo kicked me in the head again yesterday when I stumbled on the Wikipedia article on capsule wardrobing.  I was further inspired when I followed the link over to the Project 333 website (this young lady has made it over 3 months on a wardrobe containing only 33 items).  All of this fell completely into place with my Some Kind of Green project and my desire to embody the 3rd Vital Grace of Cabal Fang — frugality.  I knew it would be harder for me that it is for the fictional Remo.  When you’re a globe-trotting assassin tracking down supervillains there’s no dress code, but I work in an office.

I went forward anyway.  Monday night I started by bagging everything that didn’t fit, moved on to things that hadn’t been worn in over 1 year, and finally, with the help of my 13-year-old daughter, I pitched everything that was out of style and/or made me look like Dana Carvey from The Master of Disguise.  The 35-gallon green trashbag full of clothing was almost too heavy to haul down to the truck.  Yesterday I donated everything to Diversity Thrift.

I did not set my goal for 33 items.  Let’s face it, I don’t live in Southern California (it gets very cold and very hot here in VA) and I want to make it forever at this level, not just 3 months.  Plus, I don’t want to get rid of stuff that’s timeless and that fits (that would just be wasteful and silly).  But I got rid of 2/3 of my stuff.  Here’s what’s left in the closet (just like Project 333, this doesn’t include underwear, workout clothes, and any jewelry that is never removed and/or heirlooms):

Belts 3, Hats 5, Shoes 4, Ties 8, Watches 2, Coats 3, Sportcoats 4, Jeans 1, Khakis 4, Slacks 2, Shorts 3, Shirts (LS) 10, Shirts (SS) 8,  T-shirts 10, Suits 2, Sweaters 4.  Total: 73

This list will get smaller as some things wear out and aren’t replaced.  Those things I do replace will be more multi-purpose.

Maybe this doesn’t make any sense to anybody else, but it makes perfect sense to Remo and I.  And it makes sense to a world that’s being destroyed by consumerism, fashion, and excess.

My closet looks great, and I feel like I’m walking on air.

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Martial Arts Zine for Activists

Posted on September 27, 2011 | Leave a comment

I wrote this ‘zine for my friends who are out there every day trying to make the world a better place.  The .pdf is formatted to be printed double-sided and center-stapled to make a 5.5″ x 8.5″ booklet.  I hope it helps.

Self-Defense for Activists

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Somebody Had the Same Idea

Posted on September 24, 2011 | Leave a comment

image

Saw this in Adbusters magazine and thought, wow, I must be onto something.

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Monsanto Wants to Control the World’s Food Supply

Posted on September 23, 2011 | Leave a comment

I talk to, well, basically everybody.  From the check-out guy at the market to random folks at the water-cooler, pharmacy, or in line at DMV (my friends know this is no exaggeration).  About 6 months ago I was talking to the guy I buy my meat from and he explained how Monsanto’s and Big Agriculture are taking control of the world’s food supply.  Some of it made sense, some of it went over my head, and I never really thought it about much more.

That is until I read an article over at Anarchy & Chaos called Monsanto Wants to Control the World’s Food Supply.

Now that got my attention.  Now it all comes together.

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Another Local Grocer: Cross Bros. Grocery

Posted on September 21, 2011 | Leave a comment

Cross Bros. Grocery

In my search for local, non-chain grocers I’ve found another remarkable one — Cross Brothers Grocery in Ashland.  This year they are celebrating their 99th Anniversary.

Is everything they sell organic, free range, and/or local?  No.  Although they have some local produce and some local poultry, the vast majority of their merchandise is Richfood brand.  But if you shop there, at least you’re not giving all of your money to huge, faceless megacorporations.

These are real people, nice people, and if you ask them where the sausage or the collards come from they’ll tell you with a smile.  And you can tell them what you think.  Try that at the Big Box Grocery store.  Give them a visit.  Browse some of the displays of hundred year-old dry goods, old-time radios, and other memorabilia.  Some of us remember when every grocery store looked like Cross Bros.

Ellwood Thompson’s is still my store of choice, but there are times when I need to run out on lunch break and pick up something.  It’s a waste of gas and time to go all the way to Carytown.  Cross Bros. is half the distance, and a pleasant back-up.

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Nowhere to Eat on Route 250

Posted on September 19, 2011 | Leave a comment

Blue-plate special (courtesy of Wikipedia)

Early Sunday morning, coming home from our camping trip,  my son and I covered better than 60 miles of U.S. Route 250 from Charlottesville to Richmond.  In that entire ride there wasn’t a single non-chain restaurant open.  As we drove we waxed poetic about the wonders of mom’n’pop, truck-stop-style restaurants; about breakfasts served 24 hours, perfect flat-top hash browns, bottomless heavy white coffee mugs, bologna burgers, and blue-plate specials.

It was a great trip, and the perfect ending would have been to sit on a stool, ten feet from the grill, sipping coffee and chatting with the short-order cook like we used to do in the old days.  Hungry and defeated, we gave in and ate at a chain pancake house.  It was a brightly lit and sterile place devoid of character, a pathetic imitation of the originals it has replaced.

 

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Backcountry Must-Haves

Posted on September 15, 2011 | 1 comment

A few things for the backcountry trip to Rapidan WMA

Although these are cheats under my resolution, I had to have them for my “primitive” camping trip to Rapidan WMA this weekend.  I put primitive in quotation marks because the trip will only be primitive in comparison to what camping traditionally means.  I won’t be taking any shelter, no sleeping bag, no flashlights, etc.  Just water, knife, first-aid kit, cordage, and simple food.

Anyway, here’s what I bought.  Clockwise from upper left: (1) Pelican 1020 dry-box for keeping cell phone safe and dry.  (2) Beef jerky.  I usually make my own from organic beef or game meat, but I had no suitable lean cuts on hand.   (3) QuikClot — just in case.  Finally stopped procrastinating and spent the $12.99.  This is what the armed forces use for gunshot wounds, and it’s a great addition to a civilian first-aid kit.

Everything else I need, I either already have or was able to get used or locally.

P.S.: If anybody is interested, I’ll put up my packing lists for camping and for preparing Bug-out bags and First-aid kits.

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Jobs, the Economy, and Coffin Nails

Posted on September 7, 2011 | Leave a comment

The clamor for jobs and economic recovery drones on.  Whether it’s CNN, MSNBC, or FOX, everyone wants to know when and how we are going to “create jobs” and start “economic recovery.”  Virtually unnoticed, The Washington Post reports “Scientists Call for End to Deep Sea Fishing” and “Study Calls for Halting Oyster Fishing in Chesapeake Bay.”

Meanwhile, the planet screams for relief from the human “economy” that’s destroying it.  Do we really want this economy to grow?  Wouldn’t that mean more trees cut down to grow more crops for more hungry humans; more oil, coal, and natural gas consumed to power more industry, more shipping, more travel, and more consumerism?  More of what got us here in the first place — global warming and the current mass extinction?

Of course there are those clamoring for “green jobs.”  What they don’t realize is that a paycheck — spent on pointless consumer goods, gas for the daily commute, food shipped half way across the globe, and so on — has the same impact whether it’s earned making solar panels or mining coal.  The net effect of a “green job” is virtually the same as any other.  Any job that grows the economy is more of the same.

Jobs, so it would seem for the most part, are actually coffin nails.   So what’s next?

Maybe it’s time that we started envisioning and creating a post-growth world.  Some people, like the folks over at Post-Growth Institute, already have.  And they have complied an impressive list of things that things that we can do ourselves to usher in a post-growth world.

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Obama Administration Delays Life-Saving Smog Standards | Frances Beinecke’s Blog | Switchboard, from NRDC

Posted on September 6, 2011 | Leave a comment

Obama Administration Delays Life-Saving Smog Standards | Frances Beinecke’s Blog | Switchboard, from NRDC.

Is anybody shocked?  This kind of thing just makes me more determined than ever to do what I can myself, and more certain that parties don’t matter — they are all owned by the Corporatocracy.

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Anti-corporate Tunes

Posted on September 4, 2011 | Leave a comment

The corporate music machine (I think I just threw up in my mouth) pushes some of the most horrible stuff I’ve ever destroyed my IQ with.  So I set out on a quest for some music that doesn’t stink and that doesn’t put money into corporate pockets.

Obviously I’d prefer to go to shows — but that won’t help me when I’m making the morning slave-drive (a.k.a. “commute”).  My search led me to Bandcamp.  I found lots of free music, and some music I could buy for a few bucks.  From what I understand, only about 15% of the money you spend goes to the website, which means 85% goes to the bands.  Seems like a better deal all around.

You can search the site y tags and such, or you can do what I did — search blogs for indie bands and then see if they have anything up on Bandcamp.

If you have better ideas, please say so!

What am I listening to now?


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