I lost the plants.

I am trying to get on top of the weed situation out in the garden. Sometimes I feel like I'm winning and sometimes I feel like the weeds are winning. Today was a good day for the weeds and I felt an overwhelming urge to give in to them - there were parts where it really seemed that I had lost the plants in a jungle of very healthy, non fruit producing vegetation. The thing with weeds is, when they grow flowers you can kind of just sit back and appreciate them as something colourful and low maintenance. And the funny part is that not 2 feet from my weed garden are acres and acres of lovely rows of weed free potatoes. It doesn't seem fair.

I have been learning that there are a few different philosophies that people follow in their ecological lifestyles...

1. there are the au natural, green freak, homesteader types (you know the ones - it's all organic, chemical/toxin free, home made, grow it, raise it, kill it, eat it, borrow it, mend it, turn it into something else kind of people.)

2. there are the try and do enough to consider ourselves more green than you are types (make a big show of carrying the reusable bags, buy the organic food, load up in the bulk section, recycle all the plastic, be seen walking in the town, carry the reusable mug to Starbucks, we don't have a tv and subscribe to Natural Living kind of people.)

3. there are the I am willing to be green when it's convenient for me types (will recycle when the bucket is close by, don't sweat it when they forget their reusable bags, buys green products if they are on sale and sitting right next to the conventional products, occasionally reads product labels for harmful ingredients, knows about the ecological crisis facing the world because they have a child in school kind of people.)

4. there are the whatever, it doesn't affect me types (is always up for the latest and greatest product/gadget, likes their food bright, shiny, flawless and accompanied by a crinkly wrapper, their laundry always smells like tropical rain, recycling is something the hippies do, thinks organic milk will give you worms, is first in line at the latest designer sale after driving to the mall in their Hummer.)

To be totally honest, I WANT to be like #1, but really we are living like we're #2 and my lazy nature often pulls me to be like #4. It's funny that I'm not drawn to be like #3, but I suppose that goes with my all or nothing nature. We are a green wanna be kind of family. We are trying to care about where our food comes from - but I have to say, I'm not there yet. It's a long and boring process. I'm quite happy to go to the local farm and buy what we need. I KNOW all the reasons that it is more beneficial to be growing it, caring for it and harvesting it ourselves, but I don't want to. How pathetic is that? I keep hoping one day I will wake up and be a gardener. Our God is the master of miracles after all.
And you know what? I LIKE shiny, crinkly packaged things. I know it is wrong, but I can't help myself. There are times that I walk through the grocery store and caress the packages. Yes, you read that right - I caress the packages. I don't buy them because I know it's wrong and there are too many people who know about our project and are watching me, but I do enjoy a good package fondle. (haha - all you dirty minded readers are having a little chuckle, aren't you?) Anyways, if you run in to me in the grocery store and my hands are all over a plastic bottle of salad dressing or gently palpitating a family size bag of Doritos, leave me alone and let me have my moment. Thanks.