wake up and smell the coffee, --fair trade

i need new shoes but am struggling with the fact that lots of shoes are made in sweat shops in china, so as usual i goggle ethical footwear


http://www.soulshoes.co.nz/ is one i found (has cute kiddy shoes) but not really the chuck taylor-esk shoes i would like for myself, also has cool sandal but i still have a pair of made in NZ romans and some made in Nelson Korkers so i don't need more sandle. but oh where to find sneakers???



in that vain ...here are my requirement or cheak list that keeps floating aaround my brain when buying stuff..

Some helpful questions to ask ourselves
These questions are meant to be guidelines and not to make people feel guilty. The process of shopping is one that has to take account of many factors, your age and health, where you live, your income and your commitments to family and work, to name just a few. We also have to balance the advantages of one point against another, e.g. travelling an extra distance to buy organic vegetables or Trade Aid goods.

What is really clear from this exercise is our need for more information. We need to ask questions of our supermarkets and Ministry of Consumer Affairs. Whenever you discover information you see as relevant make sure you tell others about it.
Before you shop, ask yourself:

Do I really need this item? Can I produce it myself?
Once you have decided to buy, shopping questions relate to:

1. Production
* What is the country of production of a) materials, b) manufacture? What laws does the country of origin have regarding the use of pesticides, safety regulations for workers, wages, and conditions for workers? (Buying locally gives you more knowledge to be able to answer these questions.)
* What is the brand name? Has the company a good or bad record internationally?
* How much energy has been used to manufacture the product or its container?
* What chemicals and processes are used in the manufacturing or growing of the product or its container that could damage the workers or the environment?
* Are timber products from native rainforest?
* If the product is from animals are they well cared for? E.g. hens, pigs?
* Have animals been used in the testing of the product?

2. Transport and retail
* How much fuel has been used to transport the product to the retail outlet?
* Can you take your own bags and containers with you and buy in bulk rather than pre-packaged?
* Does your retail outlet have a good employment policy for its workers?
* How far do you travel to your retail outlet?

3. Your use
* If the product goes into the drainage system will it eventually harm the waterways?
* Is the product an energy efficient one?
* Is the product harmful to you or your family's health?

4. Disposal
* Is the product over-packaged?
* Is the product or packaging able to be re-used, composted, recycled?
* Will the packaging be harmful to animals or the environment if left lying around?

http://www.bigpicturesmallworld.com/movies/winningpeace.html

i've had dreadlocks for 6 years

If we cut up beasts simply because they cannot prevent us and because we are backing our own side in the struggle for existence, it is only logical to cut up imbeciles, criminals, enemies, or capitalist for the same reasons. -- C. S. Lewis

free lunch (performance arts)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY - Charles Dickens (1812 - 1870)
"In the little world in which children have their existence...there is nothing so finely perceived and so finely felt, as injustice."

funny that the first posts are actually about us wanting to concieve a baby and not getting pregnant the first try(hehe) the next cycle i was pregnant though....

i'm sad today :(
posted by ange @ 9:47 AM


Sunday, November 2
okay alls a bit crazy at the moment but if there is news it will be out on Wednesday (if David lets me)
hehe or maybe not ,
arrrkkkkk

posted by ange @ 6:05 PM

Wow this blog has just turned
3
the first entry/post was on the 2nd of November 2003
"happy birthday"

Lucy in some funky Silver circus threads


























Yes Lucy is my Nursling and is aged 2.25 years, i'm in the process of finding out what weaning ages are in other cultures, and in my searching i have found these splurbs...

from here
"Women in the United States today receive conflicting advice on many aspects of nursing, but especially where weaning is concerned. I am writing this now, because it has become a continuing issue for my son and I. He’ll be two in a week, and he is still nursing. Just today I was told I was “crazy” and “borderline insane” for continuing to nurse. I was also told by a very dear friend that “continuing to breastfeed a child who is almost 2 years old is not natural.”

So first let me provide some facts from the health authorities:
·The American Academy of Pediatricians guidelines recommend mothers breastfeed for at least the first twelve months of life and as long after as is mutually desired.
·The World Health Organization and UNICEF- recommend mothers breastfeeding for two years or longer.

However, despite these guidelines many physicians today consider six months to be “extended” breastfeeding, with some health professionals questioning the motives of women who nurse for more than a year. In turn, women may feel they have to hide the fact that they are still nursing an older child from disapproving health care professionals or family members. I know that we personally have done just that. Many of the doctors in our practice do not know that we are still breastfeeding. "...

..."·Studies have shown that a child’s immune system doesn’t completely mature until about 6 years of age, and it is a well established fact that breast milk helps develop the immune system and augment it with maternal antibodies as long as breast milk is produced, up to two years. (No studies have been done on breast milk composition after two years post partum). "

" The minimum predicted age for natural weaning in humans is somewhere around 2.5years with a maximum of 7.0 years."

and this ..
www.violence.de/prescott/letters/Lt_Alexander_NIH_10.28.05.doc -
The data that he refers to are contained in my letters to Dr. Zerhouni and to Dr. Alexander, enclosed. A brief summary of my cross-cultural studies on weaning age and behavior in tribal cultures is in order.
In a study sample of 26 tribal cultures, whose weaning age was 2.5 years or greater, 77% were rated low or absent in suicide. Utilizing the ratings of weaning age in Barry and Paxon (1971), it was found that combining the samples from Textor (1967) and Barry and Paxon (1971), it was found that in a sample of 65 cultures studied, 86% (31/35) of cultures with low suicide ratings had a weaning age of 30 months or greater; and 34% (10/29) cultures with high suicide had a weaning age of 24 months or less. A statistically significant difference in suicide was found between cultures with a weaning age of 24 months or less and 30 months or greater. This finding strongly suggest that a formative period in brain development exist between 2 years and 2.5 years that could mediate this effect and gives strong support to WHO for human breastfeeding for "two years of age and beyond". These data also support the conclusion that breastfeeding bonding for 2.5 years or greater is a necessary but insufficient condition for the prevention of suicide (Textor1967; Prescott2001, 2005). This scientific paper can be found at http://www.violence.de/archive.shtml,