Dreaming
When I was younger, especially during my school and university years, I had very little time for dreaming. My days were structured and full, often with compulsory but not very enjoyable activities, without much space to recharge, check in with myself, and dream. These days, I prioritise dreaming, among other things. I often sit down in the this corner (in the picture above), with a glass of tap water or with tea, to dream. For me, it's such an important practice of simple and slow living.
Do fellow humans usually share their dreams with others? I share my practice openly via this autoethnography, so I decided to share my dreams, too.
Moving to Rønne
It's a town in Bornholm (a Danish island). I fell in love with this town when I first visited it. It's where the ferry arrives from Ystad, Sweden. If you are in Denmark for some weeks, I would recommend visiting Rønne, and Bornholm in general, for a few days. Many artisans and artists live there. It's a very healing space by the sea, that is so welcoming to slow, deep, simple living. I would like to live there and grow my own food.
Realistically, my partner and I will not move there in the coming years. My partner has childcare responsibilities in Copenhagen. But perhaps we will spend more time in Bornholm in the coming years, as I would love for my child to be close to nature as often as possible.
Writing a piece about extremely minimalist pregnancy and parenting
In my life, I've written numerous academic articles, a PhD monograph, a solo authored book, a co-authored book (here's a link to all my academic works). And while several of my works use this autoethnography as my data, my works have been academic.
I would love to write about my experiences of extremely minimalist pregnancy and parenting, for myself and for fellow humans who are interested in these topics. I've been taking many notes on extreme minimalism, pregnancy and parenting throughout my pregnancy. Those fellow humans who have been reading this autoethnography for some time have probably noticed that this topic has been on my mind ever since I got pregnant. I've also been trying to find information about navigating pregnancy and parenting in a way that would be close to how I live my life (with very few possessions, slowly, simply). Such information certainly exists. Yet, it feels fragmented and overpowered by information about other approaches. This is not to say that I believe that my approach is the right one, but it's the one that is right for me and perhaps for some fellow humans, too.
I remember talking to my partner about having a child. Pregnancy and having a child is so expensive, he said. Like many fellow humans, we could not afford a normal (in the area where we used to live, Frederiksberg) pattern of consumption with countless pregnancy and baby related items (special pillows, baby gyms, bouncers, strollers, toys, clothes for different occasions, pieces of furniture and equipment). Even buying all these items second-hand would not be affordable. Neither would I want to consume this way, as it would conflict with my worldview, preferences, values, and mental health.
Despite finding very little information about extremely minimalist pregnancy and parenting, and many warnings about my approach that I received from fellow humans, I decided to dwell in my authenticity and welcome all successes and failures. I'm learning a lot on this path, and I want to share all these learnings in a more holistic way.
Running a zero-waste space
I've been researching sustainable businesses since 2016, the year I started working on my PhD. My PhD itself was about small sustainable businesses. Over the years, I've taught sustainability in business, had wonderful, deep conversations with hundreds of businesspersons, and written about sustainable business. I've been dreaming about running my own cooperative business for a long time. It would be a space that combines a zero-waste shop with learning opportunities (workshops, talks), and free exchange between fellow humans. Very often, I feel sorrow about a lack of zero-waste stores in Copenhagen, and I would love to run my own one. My partner and I wrote to a funder that funds academic projects to ask if they would support this initiative (as we would also like to research our own experience of starting a business). While they like the idea, they cannot provide startup capital. This is unfortunate because funders support buying equipment (lab equipment, computers and so on) for research in the natural sciences. As social scientists, we study organisations, among other things. While it's easier to study existing ones, it feels meaningful to study the ones researchers establish themselves. Otherwise there remains a gap between theory and practice. I notice it in my own academic field: researchers make suggestions for businesses that look good in theory but are completely unrealistic, at least in the short-term.