tales from the junkstream

Oh, the things you learn when you have a tiny human to care for. Today's lesson: sippy cups! 

I'd had this low-level anxiety about sippy cups, because it seems like every parent has an entire kitchen cabinet filled with various colorful plastic cups for their little angel, and I was NOT on board with this idea. However, figuring out which type of sippy cup my kid would like/learn to drink from seemed like an irritating trial-and-error carousel, and so the cupboard of sippy cups seemed like a sad inevitability. 

Not so! After a mostly failed introduction to Avent brand sippy cups, I stumbled upon the Munchkin brand sippies... mostly because they were the least expensive option in the baby aisle at WinCo. Mercifully, Little Dude liked the "bite-lock" style cup I'd picked up, so we've been using that one. BUT, he hasn't worked out that he needs to tip the cup up at an angle to get at the water. He relies on the adult in the room to hold the cup up for him. Not a problem at the moment, but not a long-term solution. When he holds the cup himself, he works the bite-lock nozzle but only gets air because there's no straw attachment. 

I love these boots SO MUCH. Irrationally so. I love them more than is probably healthy considering they're just footwear. They're precisely the right combination of girly and badass, and the waxed black leather adds an additional layer of quirkiness that just makes my heart pitter-pat.

HOWEVER.

After owning them for bout 3 years I've realized several things: they don't mesh as well as I'd like with my personal style, putting them on & taking them off is a little too much trouble for me (I'm a person who ties my shoes once ever and then just slips in & out of them), and no matter what time of year I wear them they are always too warm (my internal thermometer trends hot; this is why I prefer cool/cold weather).

I need to come to terms with the fact that they're not right for me. I have ALMOST accepted this. It still makes me sad. In spite of the fact that I'm not really "over" them yet, I have listed them for sale on a few FB groups I belong to. No one has expressed any interest yet, so I may move to eBay if I don't get any takers.

I met the neighbors today. They're a lovely family who moved here three days ago from India. There's Mr., Mrs., baby (11mos), and Mr.'s mother. We ran into them on the front patio when Little Dude (10mos) and I were coming back from our evening walk. We introduced our respective little dudes to each other and chatted briefly about their developmental milestones: still not sleeping thru the night (mine), suddenly refusing to be put in his car seat without screaming (theirs), and crawling (both). I mentioned that we'd had to install a baby gate to keep Little Dude contained in a safe, manageable area.

"Baby gate?" asked Mr. I tried to explain, but somehow he was missing the gist, so I invited him in to see our gate handiwork.

The thing about living in a small space (less than 900SF - it's not Tiny House territory, but it's definitely compact) is that there are only two settings: tip-top-tidy shape, and, "did a tornado blow through here?" And all it really takes to reach post-tornado shape is a tiny bit of inattention over a very short period of time... especially when - like me - you have a little dynamo of a 10-month-old who makes enthusiastic use of every inch of space he's allowed to access (there's also the fact that I have a handful recurring depressive symptoms, chief among them is loss of motivation to keep things tidy and clean... that's for another post, though). By the time Little Dude and I are ready for our evening walk, the apartment is usually in a state of total chaos and disarray. Today was no exception. Yet still, I invited them in.

"It's not such a big deal," I thought to myself. "After all, they have a baby, too. They know what it's like."

But here's the thing: I had cooked brussels sprouts earlier, so the place smelled like literal ass. There are some mailing supplies that I have set aside to reuse, but I haven't put them away where they belong yet. There's a large cardboard box right in front of the door because I had temporarily used that as a barrier for Little Dude. There were DVD cases strewn about the floor (I actually had to sweep them out of the way with my foot!) because Little Dude has discovered he can reach one particular box set on a low shelf; each day he diligently pulls the box set off the shelf and - one by one - removes each individual DVD case from the box to put it... elsewhere. The back cushions were off the couch, being used as a barrier where earlier I'd used the cardboard box. There were a couple of burp rags lying about, and various throw pillows where they generally shouldn't have been. Even the small corner of the nursery you can see from down the hall was a mess because I hadn't put the laundry away yet.

Just... ugh! Here's a lovely family who has been in the country for a matter of HOURS, and I drag them into my shit-smelling, massively chaotic and cluttered little craphole apartment... I'd like to puuuuuuuuuke.

I mean, I have spent SO MUCH time and energy working on making us and our belongings FIT inside this apartment, and the one time I have a surprise guest it looks like that? It makes me wonder why I even bother.

However, after an hour or two of feeling sorry for myself, I finally got Little Dude off to bed and set in to clean up the mess. It took less than 10 minutes to tuck everything back into its assigned spot, including the laundry in the nursery. You'd never have known that Hurricane Little Dude had worked all day making as much mess as possible. There are still a couple of hot spots: the dining room table collects clutter, as does a tray on top of the entryway table. The spot where I keep my shoes is a disorganized mish-mash right now. The place could use a good dust-vacuum, and the bathroom needs to be cleaned. Those things aside, once Little Dude's play area is converted back into Normal Living Room Mode it looks pretty ok in here.

When someone lowballs your asking price by 25% or 30% and won't negotiate at all and you're pretty sure they're going to turn around and resell your shit anyway. 

About 18mos ago (maybe as long ago as 2 years - yikes!) my darling husband brought home a Keurig machine. I was a staunch and vocal opponent of it from day 1. Realizing Husband wasn’t going to be convinced to return it, I researched reusable k-cups and asked him just to buy regular coffee and use the reusable cup. He said no, it would be too much trouble and mess.

I hated the way it gobbled up counter space in my tiny kitchen. I hated the scads of disposable single-use plastic cups that accumulated in my cabinets. Husband insisted he was going to become a coffee drinker, would finally kick that (diet) soda habit. He used the Keurig a handful of times. I don’t drink coffee, but (in the interest of at least not *totally* wasting the damn thing) I experimented with using it to make hot chocolate and tea. However, I remained opposed to it and occasionally would gently ask Husband if I could get rid of it by selling it on FB or craigslist… each time he told me ‘no.’

About 6 months ago I convinced him to let me box it up to “temporarily clear counter space” because we were expecting houseguests. Well, to the surprise of NO ONE, he didn’t miss it one single bit. So, I again gently revisited the topic of selling it, and HE SAID YES! Victoire!

Except, then, not a week later (yet before I had an opportunity to list it for sale), it seemed like the world collectively came to its senses and realized the ludicrousness of the Keurig machine and the massive trail of plastic waste it’s leaving in its wake. The guy who invented the k-cup publicly indicated regret at ever having come up with the damn things.

So now that I’ve finally convinced my husband to let go of that hulking junky counter-hogging trash-generator, I won’t be able to pay someone to take it away.

In today's Capsule Kitchen adventures, I adapted this recipe for grilled chili lime chicken and this recipe for salsa using canned diced tomatoes to make chili-lime chicken tenderloins with salsa, shredded cheese, and/or sour cream toppings. I will also steam some corn to serve with it. 

The big breakthrough was creating salsa from the ingredients I had on hand. It's virtually indistinguishable from available pre-made salsas (Tostitos & the like), and it's loads less expensive. I mean, if I'd ever thought about it I'm sure I could have figured out how to magic up some salsa from what's in the cupboard, but I'd never thought about it before. In the past I'd have either gone to get salsa or simply disregarded whatever recipe called for it in the first place. 

One of the satisfying things about working only with the capsule list* is thinking creatively to make a recipe work even though what's in the cupboard might not exactly match the ingredient list.  

From the Minimalist Lifestyle FB group I belong to: 

Inspiration [S]aturday:)) What are you working on/focusing on lately[?]

Today I plan to work on the bookshelf in the living room (which also ends up as a kind of just-inside-the-door catchall resting place) and the shower caddy. 

I’ve been meaning to pick through my books and see which ones are still relevant to hold onto. I’ve increasingly found that books I was sure were keepers have lost their importance to me, so I’m going to pull the ones I no longer have strong feelings about. I also have some reference items from college that are certainly outdated, so those will go, too.

My shower caddy has needed a reset for a while now. Over the last 10ish months I’ve made some changes in my haircare routine. Namely, I’ve gradually stopped coloring my hair using funky pink and/or purple dye, so those color maintenance items are no longer necessary. I also, for some reason, have a bar of sandalwood soap in there that I no longer use that’s been wasting away. The shower caddy hangs over the showerhead and isn’t very big, but I have a feeling I’ll be able to significantly clear it out if I just pay it a little attention. 

I am aware that “minimalism” as practiced by much of the contemporary western world is largely the province of well-off middle-aged white people (a demographic, for the record, that I am *not* part of). I want to recognize that this is problematic.

There is a built-in assumption of wealth, or at least privilege, in the exercise of “purging” one’s “excess.” There is an assumption that excess exists to be purged. I want to recognize that this itself is a privileged position. There is an assumption that if one gets rid of this or that doodad and then discovers a need for it in the future, that one is capable of reacquiring said doodad. Not everyone is in such a position.

There is so much inherent waste in getting rid of one’s unnecessary possessions… I’m disheartened by it whenever I see gleeful posts about taking bags and bags of things to charity. This in spite, and also perhaps because of having done the same myself.

I would like to do a but-for-essentials spending moratorium for the next couple/few months.

There are a couple of items I have intended to purchase but haven’t yet: a (cute) apron, and a large storage bag for cardboard boxes (we’ve been saving the larger boxes from diapers & whatnot to use as moving boxes for when the time eventually comes to pack this place up, but they’re cluttering up my living room and it’s starting to bug). Also, my mother is coming to visit in March, which has the potential to lead to other purchases. However, I think if I get the two items I mentioned and resolve to stay focused I could pull it off.

Ok. Here's my 33-item list for the Capsule Kitchen challenge. I threw it together about 5-6 days ago, and although I just spent a few quick minutes revising, I'm not sure it's in its full and final form just yet. I'm approaching this as a process... basically, an evaluation of how I handle food purchase & prep. There will obviously be updates as the project commences.

At first I thought I'd start the project "officially" on March 1, however, you've seen the pics of my fridge. I'm pretty sure I just need to start it now (or tomorrow, after I go to the grocery store).

And now, the list:

boneless skinless chicken breast tenderloins

ground beef

beef roast

beef kielbasa sausage

sliced deli turkey

sliced provalone cheese

shredded mexican style cheese

canned beans (black beans, red/kidney beans)

white rice

egg noodles/other pasta (includes yakisoba/udon)

cream of chicken soup

split peas/dry lentils

Wasa crispbread

cream cheese

potatoes

brussels sprouts

green beans

broccoli/broccolini

spinach (fresh or frozen)

frozen veg (corn, peas, mixed)

mini baguettes

onion

green onion

carrots

diced tomato

canned jalapenos

pierogis/ravioli/tortellini

marinara sauce in a jar

lemon juice/lime juice

pink grapefruit sections

granola bars/other packaged snacks

Coke Zero

"splurge" or occasional food, includes: bacon, smoked salmon, cabbage, sauerkraut, goat cheese, premade pot pies, canned soup, mac & cheese, other tbd

I have kind of a mixed format. The list is largely single-item, although there are some combined items/categories (split peas/lentils, egg noodles/other pasta, canned beans [black & red], pierogis/ravioli/tortellini). I also focused on items that I know both my husband and me will both eat, adding an "occasional" category for those items that can't really be considered regular purchases and/or that one of us doesn't really eat.

Honestly, this is pretty much just my regular shopping list. As I expected, I didn't quite reach 33 items... I ended up adding Coke Zero because it's the only beverage we really buy. As I mentioned before, I keep my grocery shopping pretty focused already; this project is a good way to officially examine what I've been doing and see if it can be refined & improved. The list will obviously be revised as I gain understanding of how I really use the ingredients.

I will not be counting:

spices (includes bread crumbs/seasoned bread crumbs)

condiments

butter, cooking oil(s) & vinegar(s)

basics, like baking soda, flour, sugar*

baby food & formula (includes sweet potatoes, frozen fruit, and applesauce)