The 5 times I failed at being a locavore

Though I constantly live in fear of letting myself and my followers down I still have not actually cheated on the locavore front. You may be able to say I have bended the rules to my benefit a few times though, and these would be the examples of such times:

Our last Granville Island's

• Netflix- Thought I cancelled my Netflix subscription Aug 31st, a friend has recently given me her log in information so I can still enjoy the goodness of limitless streaming goodness. Why this is allowed is because I am not personally contributing financially to the company and instead piggy backing on someone else's devious purchasing. 
• Granville Island- Angela and I were enjoying what we thought was a delicious pint of local Granville Island beer when someone mentioned that the company had been taken over by foreign mega company Molson in 2009...a quick google search later we decided we had had our last pint for the year. This happens to us sometimes but we often do a bit of research when we make purchases to ensure that we are still contributing local economy. With all the fact checking though, there is still room for error and this is one of the cases of learning through experience. 
• Diva Cup- I needed to purchase a new Diva Cup (it's a lady product), which are unfortunately not made in BC. They are however made in Canada  unlike and other option available to me and I purchased mine from an independently owned pharmacy in town. This one was a tough decision for me but a necessary thing every woman must go though and I hope I have made the best available choice. 
• Deep Fried Pickles- I have had deep fried pickles twice this year at the Thirsty Moose Pub because they are sooo good. I would have kept ordering them but have since found out they were not prepared on site but come pre battered which is a violation of the rules. 
• Halloween decorations- As the co-chair for the University Farmers Market I was tasked with helping find decorations for our halloween themed market this week. As we strolled the aisle's of the dollar store in search of spooky delights, I felt like I was cheating but ultimately I was not making the purchase and it was through work. It is hard when it comes down to making our own decorations as supplies would still need to be purchased but I feel like with more planning and foresight we can work on using more recycled and hand made items for future events. 

Now I know I have listed these as failures, but I do not really think of them as that. Instead I realize that these are apart of the learning experience that this challenge is shaping up to be. I have learned more about what is local in my area and limitations to a locavore lifestyle in practice then I ever could have in theory, so all in all, I am succeeding. And through these times I hope that by sharing these efforts will encourage more people think about the choices they make each day...or so i'd like to think.

Heres to making mistakes!

Melanie

"The only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing." -Henry Ford

Putting your money where your mouth is

Next on my list of changes was mentioned in a comment about banking. I have been with TD Canada since they were Canada Trust (20+ years) and had not even considered how my banking could effect my Locavore identity. But it really does matter where you put your money and the more I looked into the banking industry the more I realized how important it was to align your money with your values. Centralized banking institutions fund major industries that are environmentally harmful such as coal, nuclear, and logging which means your money could be going towards supporting them too. (There is a reason why bond villains and the bad guys on Despicable me are bankers.)  Keeping your money local via a Credit Union,  supports your local community and keeps your money where you are. I chose to switch to Integris which supports things like the SGU Dome Green House and students success in the north. The switch was easy once I knew how important it was and when I went in to the bank they were so friendly and welcoming, unlike any bank I have ever dealt with. Integris didn't even mind my mounting pile of student debt and embarrassingly large credit card balance. 

I still have a cell phone through Koodo, which is a subsidiary of Telus who is head quartered in Alberta....can I do better? Or should I even have a phone? 

Can you think of anything else I can switch to a more local option?


Have a lovely week,

Melanie

"Your diet is a bank account. Good food choices are good investments." Bethenny Frankel

Fowl Play

My personalized care package from Home Sweet Home

It occurred to me that Thanksgiving in Canada signifies the impending finish line we are approaching to the end of the harvest season. This harvest time has meant the most to be because of the significance of seasonal food in my diet and has built a heightened awareness to what is available in my region. Though I am celebrating locally, it was still nice to connect with friends and family across the country to remind me how wonderful life really is and to be truly thankful.

To celebrate thanksgiving my mother, who faithfully reads my blog, decided to follow one of the links I left to my local grocers and ordered me a feast! I was so surprised when I got there to find a giant bag full of the best of the best things that I could not even have dreamed of. I now have 4 flavours of miso gravy....4! Thanks again Mom!

My landlord decided to park a trailer on the site of my garden a few weeks ago, ruining the rest of my own vegetables for the year.  In response I'm looking for a new place to live. Hearing this a professor at school took it upon himself to restock my cupboards from his personal garden with so many fresh veggies! I got this giant cabbage you can see in the photo (soon to be sauerkraut), rutabaga, potatoes, carrots, onions and cucumbers and the site of them almost brought me to tears of joy. It never ceases to amaze me how wonderful people are and that so much good came out of a bad situation.

Cabbage and Rutabaga from a friends garden

For my thanksgiving I spent the evening with friends at a shotgun dinner where everyone brought a homemade dish. I brought mashed potatoes and an apple stuffed buttercup squash, all local and from right here in PG. Though my dish's were local, some of the other ingredients on my plate were somewhat questionable and I am pretty sure I ate cheese from the other side of the country. I realize that not everyone thinks about food to the same degree as I do but hopefully these pages can inspire at least some thought towards it. I am so thankful for friends and family and the amazing community I am apart of that has made living local mean so much more to me. I hope I can give back as much love and appreciation as I have felt in these last weeks and make every moment count.

In good food,

Melanie


"The thankful receiver bears a plentiful harvest." -William Blake

1 month down, 11 to go!

Handmade Earrings from Clever Twist 

Our first month as locavores is complete and I can safely say it went great! So much love and support was sent our way that the transition was seamless. September was a great month to be a living local in Prince George with harvest time, fun events and farmers market goodness. Already our story has been shared on the internet, radio and on t.v much to my shock and amazement. People ask if I am missing out on anything but I feel as if I am in fact gaining a better appreciation of how wonderful eating local really is. Only confession I have is that last week I had a dream I went shopping at the mall and then realized I couldn't buy any of it so had to return everything... what a nightmare! In real life I get my retail therapy shopping at the farmers market like these gems I found at the University Farmers Market last Tuesday.

Looking forward, I still have some old non-perishables in the fridge from eons ago but am now starting to think about what to do when they run out. I wish I would have canned and froze more produce for the winter, but I am confident we can survive (and thrive). Over the summer we had a pickling party with friends and made home made dills and bread and butter pickles. Last week we got some mushrooms from the market and cooked and froze them. My roommate brought some beautiful apples up from her families house on Salt Spring Island (and goat cheese yum!) that we have been eating everyday and made some delicious apple sauce for canning. I also froze the 10 lbs of peaches I bought at Home Sweet Home for peachy goodness in the winter time. My roommates call me a squirrel because I have stashes of food everywhere but again one of the little tricks that will make living locally easier outside of the harvest months with just a little planning and foresight.

We were so inspired today by David Suzuki, J.B Mackinnon (author of 100 Mile Diet) and Utcha Sawayers (Food Share) during a virtual classroom on Hungry for Change as part of the Blue Dot Tour. (If you haven't already got your tickets the Blue Dot Tour is in PG Nov 1st) Talking about food security and the importance of organic, local food with students from across the country was so reaffirming that what we are doing is valid and important to share. Together we watched the film Island Green about organic farming in PEI, can you imagine an entire province going organic?

In good food,

Melanie

"For me the most important thing is to think of the Earth as our mother, not the motherlode." -David Suzuki