Anderssein und die Gruppe

Hallo zusammen, nehmt gerne Platz auf meinem Sofa, hört zu, redet und denkt mit :)
Wenn wir uns fragen, warum es in der Welt so viel Streit, Hass und Krieg gibt, warum in der Politik in Deutschland so viele kleine und große Ego-Spiele gespielt werden, dann können wir uns einfach unseren Mikrokosmos auf der Arbeit, in der Familie oder im Freundeskreis anschauen. Die Muster sind überall gleich. Nur haben sie in dem einen Kontext kleine und in dem anderen große Auswirkungen. Warum wird in der Schule oder auf der Arbeit gemobbt? Warum nehmen Eltern ihre Kinder nicht so an, wie sie sind? Warum gibt es Rassismus?

Fly away - be free like a bird - change the climate?

On the way to Croatia, summer holiday

Sunset high above the clouds. How can seeing such a beautiful thing be so harmful to humans and the whole planet? A cognitive dilemma.
We fly around the globe to discover untouched nature. And we kind of conveniently forget that we harm nature in doing so. Often we produce a greater carbon footprint than a whole year’s personal allowance needed to keep the climate safe.

To keep the climate safe we need drastic cuts in air travel. This is very well in theory, but it is not always that easy in practice. It means to adopt an alternative life style.

Just stop! Do it like lobsters

pixabay.com

Life never stands still: every day we all learn something new, experience something great or face a new challenge.

If we are sad, we comfort each other by saying: “Life goes on.“ Well that's true, but sometimes it's better to stop for a moment and say: “Take your time. It's okay if you're sad.“

What was that again with the lobsters? They hide after their escape from the old shell. The term molting is used to refer to the entire cyclical process of preparing for, undergoing, and recovering from that act. For lobsters, molting is a continual process during their whole life. That's the same for us human beings, even though in psychological terms. 

The lobster remains secluded for several days while its shell hardens and then re-emerges to engage in its normal activities.
We could learn a good deal from lobsters.

The burn-out of our planet

©SF

Let's talk about ressources... well no, let's talk about us and our planet. How do we want to live? How can we live? How do we really want to live? Christoph Heinrich from WWF Germany says that we need a fundamental rethink. We need a new definition about wealth and success which includes the healthiness of individuals and the environment.
Is this what free trade agreements like TTIP and CETA aim for?

Read more about the living planet report 2016 

Sustainability in daily life - taste the waste

I just made apple puree out of squashy apples. With a hint of cinnamon... taste the waste! It's rather tasty. Well it was not waste yet, but I didn't want to eat the apples anymore, so in the end I would have thrown them away. Sustainable consumption often means that you're faced with a cognitive dilemma. In this case: throw the apples away, hang around and watch a movie or find a solution for the apples and act sustainable?!
It's all about habits and laziness.

But it feels great to change habits.

Parisian (fl)air

Weird crossroad in sticky Paris with a halved house.

City life or country life?

Foto: SF, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, East Germany

Usually you can't choose where to stay. But what if you were really free to decide where to live, would you opt for the city or the country life?
Well, after having enjoyed sleeping in a site trailer for almost two weeks I'm in love with the chirping of crickets, the sky full of brights stars, fresh air, great fruit trees and the dew on the grass in the mornings... Going back to the city definitely means waking up from niced dreams!

How I became an urban farmer!

My first own garden salad!

Our field of 40 square metres

Since spring 2016 I've joined an urban farming project called "Ackerhelden". Together with two friends who told me about the project I rented a piece of land. We grow potatoes, kohlrabi, salad, pumkin, tomatoes, spinach and much more. In short, urban farming or urban gardening is the practice of cultivating, processing and distributing food in or around a village, town, or city.

Why do I make the effort to plant my own vegetables instead of buying them only in the supermarket? Our modern agricultural production systems function at the expense of human beings and the environment. Meanwhile many people are talking about climate change and sustainability. But too few are willing to change their habits and their way of life. I think it's not only about producing words but also action! At least we could try a little bit more. 

Christmas present - Personal, Vegan, Sweet

Schoko-Cranberry-Crunchies

Each year, many people ask themselves what to buy as a christmas present. But often shopping is no fun, it's crowded and expensive.

Forget about rushing around shops in order to find the one and only, the right present at the last moment. Instead, be creative! Most people are really happy, if you give a gift that comes from the heart. Being creative can be rather time-consuming, but it means you are giving time and attention to others. Can you imagine a more personal and valuable gift?

Billig fliegen ist (k)ein Genuss

Wer hat schon mal Stille Post gespielt? Als Kind bestimmt fast jeder. Aber als Erwachsener? Am Flughafen kann bzw. muss man dieses und weitere Spiele spielen.
Das geht so: Nachdem man sich nach Leibeskräften bemüht hat pünktlich am Gate zu sein, (dazu mit der Metro durch die ganze spanische Hauptstadt gefahren, quer durch den ganzen Flugfafen gewetzt ist, den Sicherheitscheck über sich ergehen lassen, bzw. die Arbeit der Flughafenpersonals noch mit erledigt hat (keiner befand es für notwendig die Gepäckkörbe richtig aufs Band zu schieben, sodass die Passagiere auf der anderen Seite vergeblich auf ihr Gepäck warteten, das noch gar nicht losgerollt war) und davor noch schnell den letzten Schluck Wasser ausgetrunken hat (auf der anderen Seite kann man ja die Flasche auf der Toilette mit Chlorwasser wieder auffüllen)), steht man sich zu guter Letzt am Gate die Beine in den Bauch (ach und hier erfährt man, dass für das Handgepäck der letzten Ankömmlinge oh Wunder kein Platz mehr an Bord ist. Das Handgepäck darf zwar kostenlos aufgegeben werden, verusacht aber am Zielflughafen Wartezeiten am Gepäckband, was das Verpassen der anvisierten S-Bahnen nach sich zieht).
So weit, so gut, äh schlecht. Hier in der Schlage vor dem Abflugsgate beginnt dann das Stille-Post-Spiel oder jedenfalls eines, das ihm ähnelt, aber noch keinen eigenen Namen hat.

Taste the waste - it's good!

This is one of many monster-zucchinis which are saved from the dustbin. It grew at the field of a farmer in Leverkusen and it has only the baby-size of the big monsters! I couldn't carry the heavier ones home... But I decided to give this zucchini a chance, maybe it's tasty?

You can't resist a delicious Polish vegan burger

Vegan burger bistro "Nova Krova" Kraków

Before coming to Poland, everybody at home was wondering how I will survive the Polish food. I'm not a hundred percent vegetarian, but I try to avoid meat as much as possible. In fact, it's not that difficult! Yes, traditional food and cooking in Poland means eating meat, especially pork meat. But in Kraków one can find many vegetarian bars, bistros and restaurants or a variety of vegetarian dishes. Potato pancakes, buckwheat, sautéed wild mushrooms, pierogi stuffed with cabbage, spinat, cheese or potato to name just a few. The prized vegetable among Poles is beetroot (beet), so you cannot only find it in the famous Red Borscht Soup, but also on burgers. For sure Kraków is not a good example for an average Polish city. But also in other cities like Warsaw, Wrocław, Poznań, Zakopane or Łódź one can experience something similiar. Like in Germany particularly young people living in cities want to eat vegetarian or vegan food, if for reasons of health and figure or environment is not always clear. 

To put it briefly, all in all Poland is not immune to the international "movement" of vegetarism. Moreover, the Polish thereby are very creative and innovative.

Who can resist this nice looking vegan seitan burger?

Photos: SF