Dumpster diving to get trashed

The third time is not the charm at “Raider Rose,” but then again it really is.

Erin Lee and I recently went on our third food-lunking adventure only to discover we had likely become the antithesis of Robin Hood and his merry men. Instead of finding dumpstered items in their typically nondescript garbage bags, we found items in bags labeled “donations.”

In a moment confusion and incredulity we decided to take the loot and vowed to learn more about whether or not these items were truly being donated. We reasoned that at 11:43 am it was a fair bet that these items would go to waste, and that no one in fact was going to pick them up.

This was five days ago, and since then Erin has had an enlightening talk with a staff member at Raider Rose. It turns out there are philanthropic deals worked out where items such as flowers and foodstuffs get donated to churches and other establishments. Erin’s discovery, however, proved we were bastards stealing from the poor.

With a new light shed on our combating foodwaste endeavor, it appears I will be retiring from dumpster diving. (Though, I may check in from time to time to learn more about the donation process.) Despite personally losing a treasure trove of delectable food items, I am happy to concede that this third trek to the dumpsters was actually quite positive and made me very excited for the plight of the American wo/man. Besting the idiocy intrinsic in our sue-happy nation, Raider Rose has found a way to circumvent litigious shenanigans and give a good portion of its food waste to those in need.

A revelation that knocked my socks off

I slid my bookmark into “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay,” turned off my overhead light, and began the process of letting my brain go into free thought mode – the ultimate preemptive measure before falling asleep, but then it happened. A true revelation. I know it because I still have the goosebumps as I’m writing this. I feel like I did when I was listening to “Politik” on A Rush of Blood to the Head, and for 30 seconds my whole world was this wave of purity.

I don’t want to be an environmentalist! I just want the world to be in a place where everything is beautiful and clean, where we can drink the rain or the water pouring out of streams. But, I don’t want to spend my life talking about carbon credits, picking up garbage, or hounding people to hound the government about the maladies of nuclear energy. I don’t love the pursuit. I don’t love the thought of making my life revolve around telling people to change their habits. I don’t love nit-picking over what is better in the long run, nuclear energy or Orwellian wind turbines.

It’s not sexy or fun. I’m the kind of person that needs a rush. I like to climb buildings, do needless backflips, longboard down hills that make the wheels on my skateboard wobble. I like fighting for love, the kind that only comes from true wild abandon, spark of the moment intrigue, or a familiarity that radiates from knowing someone intimately. Ileana, I’m looking at you right now.

In the same token, I don’t want to teach English abroad. I sure as hell want to go abroad, and I sure as hell will teach English if it will pay my way, but I don’t love the idea of filling somebody’s head with the English language. I love the idea of being in a place, like a Taiwan or a China, where I’m completely immersed in different. A place where I have to use actual knowledge to exist. I love the idea of surfing at daybreak and climbing over rock faces in a world that is entirely new. I love the idea of staying up endlessly into the night, making moments under radiant city lights or breathing in Gaia's majesty in the country.

This is what I love. This is what I want to pursue. Those people that wake up in life and want to be doctors, they’re not so different from what I am. Just like someone who adamantly knows their profession, from the outset of high school I’ve known that I don’t want to specialize, I don’t want to give in, I don’t want to become part of a system that chews people up and steals their identities. I want to be that fun-loving, crazy, adventurist that drinks in all the resplendent that the world has to offer. I don’t want to settle and become an occupation or a title, because I am so much more. We all are.

So, as I ready for another dumpster dive tomorrow night, I say thank you Gaia for the clarity. I am a universe away from where I stood last week. I entered into the equivalent of an Imperial Death March, as I met my dad’s contacts for my job hunt last Friday. They were great people, but guess what, I wasn’t. I was phony, fake, and while I was airing my busted up elevator speech, I felt as hackneyed as an oil barren.

The funny thing about the job hunt, is that the person who is hunting for the job, is all too often the person who winds up getting sacrificed in the end.

There’s too much in this life to go see. There’s too much growing to take part in. There’s too much love to grab onto and fight for, versus becoming a ghost in a shell.

Arlandria nears EBT glory

Like Bilbo Baggins I’m there and back again

I hit up Arlandria’s Farmers Market with my board in hand

Snaggin’ free range beef, I’m ‘bout to have a cow

I’m talkin’ grass-fed goodness, yeah real local chow

For those who know what it is like to be continually hungry, like serious tapeworms from Zambia hungry, you can relate to the pure satisfaction that hails from schnarfing peanut butter right out of the container. You could framboliate a whole song and dance about the delectable attributes of avocado and mozzarella or the mouthwatering properties of eggs over black beans. But alas there is something leagues better, greater, and more zestifantastiskt than anything on earth:

Beef, guilt-free and fabulous.

With the sun on my face and longboard underfoot, I voyaged to the Arlandria Farmer’s Market today to take part in an unsuccessful food stamp transaction. It turns out the April 3, start date for electronic benefit transfers (EBT) has been pushed back, due to what was explained to me as a delay from the state of Virginia to provide an EBT training session. Yet, it wasn’t a total loss. I purchased some beef for making kabobs from Whats For Dinner Now LLC housed in Timberville, Virginia, (113 miles away) and I was informed EBT cards will definitely be good to go by May 1^st.

Also, I owe this treat entirely to my Aunt Gloria and my cousin Mandy. They came to DC for the Cherry Blossom festival and despite my attempts to block their charity, they gave me money to take them to the airport. My aunt and cousin are phenomenal. They spoiled me rotten all week taking me out to Bugsy’s, Asian Bistro, and they even treated my girlfriend and I to dinner at Fontaine Caffe & Creperie, all in scenic Old Town. Nothing in the world is better than sharing time with the people you love.

Steve goes back to college

Running past William and Mary’s Grim Dell and Crin Dell, en route to the Chesapeake Room, I knew that I was in for a good night. I was visiting my friend Nathan, at his stomping ground and we were going to catch Donald Glover perform stand-up.

Nathan is not your typical drink of water. He speaks Arabic, does improv, pulls all-nighters to make board games, and he’s had his cell phone number screened by Kinokii footpads due to an exorbitant amount of prank phone calls. So usually the stuff coming out of his mouth can be pretty out there, but that still never prepared me for the question he asked – the question that I will forever associate with William and Mary:

“Steven, do you want to go to Vietnam or the Opium Den?”

After careful deliberation we decided to go to Vietnam and see where the night would take us.

VIETNAM:

Passing through a modest living room, smelling of some freshly blazed gonj, I made my way for the loud music and clamoring of people behind the Pike House. I walked out into a sea of green and brown. Guys in fatigues and girls in peace garb were vying for space among bamboo reeds, a stationary military surplus truck, and a wooden watchtower, while a giant floodlight draped the grounds in a hazy glow.

This was it. The theme party where everyone commits, where the guys that get the girls are not the doushebags who act hard, but the funny eccentrics who allow conversations to volley and goofiness to reign supreme. This was the party where kegs flowed freely, girls and guys mixed at an equal ratio, and the setup made you believe you were in a different time and place.

Unfortunately, this was also the party that got raided about 30 minutes after our arrival. Nathan, being one who is well in line with the auspices, had the intuition to get us the hell out of there in time. This brought us to our next locale.

THE OPIUM DEN:

It turns out the opium den is where the quirky gay guys on campus hang out. Yes, at William and Mary “Drinkin With the Bitches” is the slogan proudly displayed in the den. And yes at William and Mary the gay guys hold just as much as much currency as the frat guys with women - I mean crazy-insane-only-in-a-movie type women.

Let me tell you about the femme fetale entity that is Foxy, Bouncy and Polish. These girls not only flirted with everyone at the party, they seemed to pull strength from lips they locked onto. Foxy used her curly hair, Bouncy her love of dance, and Polish used her heritage and her high heels to work her seduction. You loyal readers know that I have a girlfriend, so when the freaky femmes paid me a visit, I immediately said the noble thing: “I’m gay. Sorry I’m not interested in women.”

Okay, maybe not so noble.

I said to Foxy, “see, even if you girls were to make out, it would have absolutely no effect on me.”

Instead of a “yeah right” or an eye roll, Foxy grabbed Polish by the waist, tongued her neck, and then the two made out. I’ve got to say, I’ve always envied the benefits gay guys have around women, and it felt pretty exciting exploiting the benefits at the den.

THE AFTERMATH:

William and Mary student body, you are excellent. Nathan if you read this, you are Captain Glory. Though I was not particularly eco-conscious during my campus visit, I learned some things along the way. It is crazy important to have fun, more so than worrying about my carbon footprint in lieu of seizing the moment.

Being a true environmentalist requires a lot of saying “no” to things. Like no to fossil fuels, no to delicious hot dogs, and no to savory sausage on deep dish pizza. I’m not sure if I can be a “no” person.

After this trip, I’m very inspired to pull a page out of a book of a very wise friend of mine known as “Lata,” who is living his life “en Vivo.”Essentially, every time there is a moment that could build what he considers an enriching life moment, he goes for it. I love this style, and I’m going to have to see how it fits into the environmental movement.

Earth-side Down

Sometimes if you want to create a masterpiece you have to turn your vision upside down. Instead of staring into a Degas and trying to reconstruct his ballerinas, you have to turn his canvas upside down and try to paint the inverted lines.

French Impressionist, Edgar Degas, was more interested in movement than color. Disregarding classical rules of composition, Degas changed the realm of impressionist painting with his use of the oblique angle. Perhaps our modern world can pull a page out of Degas' book, challenging the role of multinational corporations by prompting these behemoths to lead our environmental revolution instead of running counter to it.

As an aspiring environmentalist it’s easy to detest multinational corporations. Walmart, Coca-Cola, McDonalds, you name it, they pretty much rock the gamut of every environmental, social, and political injustice out there, BUT that’s not a fixed certainty. For example, mixed in its arsenal of selling the cheapest, shittiest, and dirtiest products, Walmart also sells organics. Then there's Pepsi Cola, which recently announced it’s aim to do away with plastic bottles.

The beauty of these massive corporate entities is that they predictably peddle goods as cheaply as possible to turn the greatest profit. Yet, with people everywhere waking up to the havoc these goods wreak on their fellow citizens and the earth, MNC's now have to sell socially responsible products or consumers will turn elsewhere.

And that’s where the painting starts. That’s where our world can come together like George Seurat’s dots and construct a masterpiece.

Our citizenry is beautiful on the whole. Americans require justice like it were oxygen. However, we have a phenomenal disconnect when it comes to knowing the effects of the things we buy. But that disconnect is shrinking. Even in a climate of campaign contributions, political favors, and lax regulation, the consumer’s voice and choice is spreading. It’s a battle of information and once the individual learns how the goods they consume affect their social, political and environmental justice, the individual will consume to the best of their budget constraint.

I’m blessed with being poor right now. I get energy subsidies which allow me to purchase green energy, food stamps which I will get to use at the Farmer’s market starting April 3, and a budget constraint which pushes me toward purchasing second-hand clothing. Some people aren’t as fortunate to have these rationale choices aligned so readily before them.

But then again, some people with crazy-wealth purchase the shiza of the world because they have yet to learn they can be better, freer, and engage in the pursuit of happiness while upholding the citizens of Gaia’s natural rights.

Special thanks to Ileana Vink for the inverted painting motif and Erin Givarz for the Pepsi Cola link.

Finding Veritas

I taped-up a political cheat sheet today as my first step toward being more present. I aim to understand which legislative and executive committees play the largest role in shaping environmental legislation. I also plan to use this cheat sheet to understand which legislators are most influential and in the most opportune positions to receive campaign contributions.

Though I’m often guilty of hurling angry superlatives about our nation’s lack of perfect information, there’s literally an indomitable fleet of the stuff available on our information superhighway. It’s crazy actually how much we are capable of knowing. Especially as a result of people like the WikiLeaks rogue, the young revolutionaries of the Middle East, and the enterprising journalists of every beat who do not rest until they expose their discoveries to the public. It’s this insatiable drive for truth, justice, and freedom, inherent in the human condition, that makes me so excited to be alive.

Around 1:30 a.m. last I night, I finished watching “Food Inc.” Prior to the film, I had been reading the book, so I had a feel for what my trip down the rabbit hole would be like. But what I saw made me realize that I was fighting a battle in my life between truth and ignorance, and I was losing to ignorance.

Instead of getting nourished from farms, nasty, mechanical, Soylent Green-like operations are dominating the free market, stealing my health, dignity and sovereignty.

A lot has been pinging around in my head today, because of that movie, but the winning concept was to be more pragmatic and more deliberate. In order to achieve results I have to know where I want to wind up and what elements of a system I would like to see bettered.

First Step: Knowing where I want to end up

When I’m old and wrinkly I want to be able to look back and believe that my time on this earth lent itself to harmony with Gaia. If I can do the following, I think I will be happy in wrinkled years.

- I want the energy that I consume to be carbon neutral

- I want the food that I eat to be part of a sustainable life-cycle

- I want the earth to stay beautiful so everyday people can become wildly inspired

- I want the clothes on my back and the material goods in my life to be cradle-to-cradle

- I don’t want to add waste to our closed system

- I want the money I earn (my material good sovereignty) to be earned in harmony with Gaia

- I want these rights to be accessible to others

Second Step: Getting There

Some parts of my wish list are more readily attainable than others, but one thing’s for certain, I’m going to build an evolving strategy for each of my wishes so that I can one day get there. Below are links to the evolving plans for my checklist:

- I ain’t no Fossil Fool!

- Fooooooood that’s gooooooood

- Keeping Gaia Beautiful

- Going cradle-to-cradle

- Waste: Cutting that shit out

- Wage against the machine

- Anything I can do, you can do better

Power Up:

Energy: World Resources Institute estimates that there is a potential market for clean energy products to reach India’s rural poor. The market potential is estimated at $2.11 billion/year and companies surveyed to supply clean energy to India’s rural poor have reported annual gross revenue to have grown by 36% since 2004. In other words, the base of the pyramid – the world’s poorest people - are starting to be able to afford clean energy.

Food: The following is an excerpt from Food Inc. the book: Now nearly ten years have passed [since Fast Food Nation . How has the story of America’s relationship to food changed in that time?

“There has been a sea of change in American attitudes toward food, especially among the educated and the upper-middle class. And there is now a powerful social movement centered on food. Sustainable agriculture, the obesity epidemic, food safety, illegal immigration, animal welfare, the ethics of marketing to children – all of these things are now being widely discussed and debated…There’s been a huge change in eating habits and awareness among the well-educated and upper-middle class. For proof of that just look at the success of Whole Foods, the Food Network, the rise of celebrity chefs, the spread of farmers’ markets, all the best sellers about food…I hope the food movement will grow and extend more broadly throughout society. And we need a government that encourages that.”

~ Eric Schlosser, author of Fast Food Nation