Blindness

I finished reading Blindness by Nobel-prize winner Portuguese author Jose Saramago. It is a haunting book. In a rather low-key way and without moralizing, it shows human weaknesses. None of the characters have names, only descriptive characteristics. What I found puzzling was that we see what happens through the eyes of somebody who has not lost her sight.
In any case, it is a tough read - ugly things happen - but the style is something I had never read before with run-on sentences that read like real conversations. Here is a sample:
"One of them declared, I'm not budging from here, what they want to do is to catch us and then kill us all, I'm not moving either, said another, Nor me, chipped in a third."
I was surprised I had never heard of the author. I think it says more about me than about the author, though: I am always surprised when I learn something new! (I probably shouldn't have shared that...)

No Water

Zeroscaping is the fancy word for sensible responsible landscaping. You use native plants that require very little watering. I have done a little research on Amazon and most books are written on the US West Coast for arid climates. The local books are all sold out but I am told some local landscapers can be used as consultants if you want to convert your garden to a greener shade... My friend M. met a couple who are zeroscapers by going to a green exhibition. She was hoping to have them over to redo her landscaping for easier maintenance. Maybe next year...

Stranded

We've been sans wireless for the past two days. We get windows of opportunitues: 10 minutes here, a few seconds there. I don't know if it's because it is unavailable but I find myself longing for a connection, any connection. I accessed my emails from work but haven`t browsed the web at all. I miss my daily fix.

This brings to mind my friend M. who raves about leading a simpler life.

I read about a woman who, in her bid to go green, changes one habit a day for a year. She found giving up little things the hardest: kleenexes, for example were sorely missed during a bad cold. But she felt a lot lighter when she sold her car and embraced her bike. With the larger, more expensive items gone, a heavy weight was lifted from her shoulders. Her goal is to keep up the good habits she picks up every day for the whole year she vowed to do this.

I realize I equate simpler life with living more ecologically. I am at a loss to think how I could possibly come up with a new idea every day to live more simply. I suppose when you put your mind to it, your whole attitude changes and you start seeing things you would normally overlook. And so I have to believe that if I set my mind to it, I could achieve this goal.

If anybody finds the blog of the "green" woman, please send me the link. Hopefully, I will resume surfing soon. Our provider has promised to send help tomorrow around noon. Help is on the way!

A New Way to Party

I was introduced to the issue of kids' birthday parties by a friend who enlightened me on the oneupmanship going on between parents to make their kids' parties memorable. I subsequently read horror stories where parents went overboard with very expensive entertainment for a bunch of kids (we're talking thousands of dollars). On the other side of the story are parents who are reacting to that state of affairs.
ECHOage is such an initiative. The child whose birthday it is goes to the site (presumably with a parent), chooses a charity (Canadian or American) and sends an e-invite to his/her friends. In turn, they send money that would have been spent on a card, wrapping paper and a present to ECHOage. ECHOage divides the money between the charity and the child. The child gets to buy ONE present. The idea is that the number of presents each child was getting was ridiculous and that they did not appreciate it. With ECHOage, the child gets to choose one symbolic gift that represents that year thus eliminating waste. It also shows the child a concrete way to share with others less fortunate.
I love the idea but I am also sad that it has come to that. There is a sense of loss because of the way in which we give. For kids, somebody else buys the gift and they perhaps don't participate much in that aspect. Perhaps people will bring handmade gifts to keep with the spirit of giving alive? In any case, it's nice to see alternatives cropping up.