332

 Not doing as an act of (self)care

In our society, acts of (self)care often seem to require consumption. Recently I've been thinking how to me not doing something feels like genuine self care and an act of care towards the Earth. I was in the shower. It feels so strange writing about it. But this is where ideas for my works arise at times. They don't always arise when I am reading academic books and articles. When I was in the shower, I simply wanted to be there with Water. No human-made products. Not even certified organic ones. Nothing. Afterwards, my skin was not dry. My hair was soft, and the waves and curls were well shaped. It made me think about instances and habits of non-consumption. Many years ago, I realised that not consuming makeup, perfumes, and most skincare was a gift for my skin. I live with an autoimmune skin condition which improved a lot since I quit using almost all products. Not wearing artificial fabrics, clothing with patterns, most colours, uncomfortable (yet smart) clothing and shoes were gifts for my body and for my psyche. Avoiding travelling made me connect with the place where I live more deeply. Avoiding pressures to spend much time with fellow others, to network, to attend as many workshops and conferences as possible helped me connect with myself. Avoiding restaurants as much as possible makes me connect with raw ingredients. And so on. 

331

 Repairing

Recently, my partner gave me one of his snoods/multi-purpose pieces of fabric. I used to borrow this item at times, but he didn't want it anymore. I believe he has another one of these or even several. In winter I invited into my life two hats that my partner and I could share. But when he gave me this snood, I realised that I didn't need those hats anymore. They are beautiful and almost new, so I decided to give them away. I brought them to a local byttestation alongside several other objects I didn't need to keep. This byttestation seems very popular. The snood is old and had a hole in it which I have repaired. I think this small imperfection is beautiful and makes this object even more meaningful to me. 

Over time, I've noticed that I prefer to keep the items that are simple and imperfect and give away more socially desirable ones. For example, I prefer glass jars that come with food over vases, glasses, and mugs. I much prefer wild flowers over store-bought ones, stones found in nature over human-made decorative objects. 

330

 Planting

When my partner and I moved in together, we invited two plants into our space. Later, we received another plant as a gift from a family member. Unfortunately, those plants died during cold and grey Danish winter. I often wonder how fellow humans keep tropical plants alive at home. I decided to avoid buying new plants and even taking cuttings of tropical plants from my fellow humans. I still had some soil and clay pots so I planted some ringblommor/calendula. It took only a couple of days for them to sprout. Watching them grow is a self-transcendent experience. Ringblommor are some of my most favourite plants. I use them in salads and to make tea. I've been thinking about my academic work. When my first paper was published in 2020, I was glad but felt nothing that can compare to the intense feeling of joy and even euphoria when I see these magical calendula plants (my fellow beings!) coming to life. 

329

 Moving again

This beautiful place in Copenhagen has been our home since Autumn 2023. It is our first common home and a space where we practise sustainable living as a couple. Before we moved in together, I practised extreme minimalism. Together we decided to practise minimalism to accommodate our needs, my partner's need for comfort and my need for simplicity. This studio flat is around 40 sq. m. Initially, we had only one bed there, but then we invited another one as my partner's child stays with us at times. My partner has been looking for something a little larger than this apartment, as we thought it would be nice if his child had her own room. We finally found a suitable place. 

We will not be moving too far from where we live currently, but this move still causes anxiety. In my life I've moved a lot and lived in countless places. When I was very young, my family moved due to my stepfather's job. As an adult I moved a lot because of academia and intuition. On this journey, I have learned that one doesn't simply get used to moving. In fact, the more I moved, the more I wanted stability, to stay somewhere for a long time. Moving constantly meant that I didn't make the best choices in terms of sustainability. All the places I chose to live in were small and didn't need much energy to keep warm, but they were still far, in terms of sustainability, from living in an eco-community or less expensive areas. Renting in more expensive areas that were close to work and felt safe meant participating in capitalism. 

Whenever I moved, due to practising extreme minimalism, I could carry with me everything I lived with. When I moved from Sweden to Finland and then from Finland to Denmark, I only had a small backpack and a tote bag with me. I lived with less than 50 items and without any furniture. This will be the first time when I move with more objects. While I still live with very few personal possessions, as a household we have furniture, a vacuum cleaner, kitchen items. This time I will take with me the jars that came with food and that I use for different purposes (e.g., for storage and as vases). When I was leaving Finland, I gave some jars to a friend and some I recycled. 

Before I move, I always try to finish as many products (e.g., soap, shampoo) and food as possible and avoid buying more. 

I have also looked once again at my personal possessions. Recently my partner and I were discussing basic needs and survival needs in relation to something we are writing together. My viewpoint is that basic needs and survival needs are different things. For example, food is a basic need. If we take a basic needs approach, we care more about the category "food" rather than the bare minimum. One can survive eating non-organic, highly processed, unhealthy food. My approach, where I prioritise basic needs (not survival needs), entails eating unpackaged, least processed, seasonal, organic food. My partner said I could survive with only 1 pair of trousers and 1 t-shirt. This is true. But because I focus on basic needs, I choose to live with 16 or so items of clothing. It also allows me to do laundry less often, for ecological reasons. Yet, it made me think about clothes. Clothing is one of the categories of products that I consume. As an experiment, I decided to keep 10 items. They are 2 linen shirts, 2 pairs of sweatpants, 2 pairs of shorts and plain tops. The rest I will bring to a byttestation so fellow humans can have the items I decided to live without. They are beautiful items made from certified fabrics, so I hope they will find a new home very soon. I will also give away 2 hats as recently my partner gave me one of his scarf-like pieces of fabric. It has a hole and I prefer to keep this one and give away the hats that look beautiful.