The first post of 2019 - A Call to Kindness

I bet you have been wondering what has taken me so long? Or if I’ve forgotten what kindness is? No! Absolutely Not! 

The truth is that would be impossible. 

This past year I’ve been working full time and I decided to be thoughtful about what I wanted to share on my blog.

There are a few things that I’ve stuck to in recent years that may continue this year like Sustainable September (but also may not depending on what this year actually brings). 

I am acknowledging my inconsistency with blogging too. I’m not perfect but I’m constantly improving.  Kindness is still so important to me that I keep coming back to it again and again. 

2018 brought with it some HUGE changes for me.  I moved between 3 countries, from Australia to Wales to England. I got 2 jobs (one which I had to leave in order to pursue the other). I moved to 2 new houses in two different counties. I also got myself a new boyfriend (well he’s not so new now... but the first I’ve had in a long time). It brought with it a change in my life circumstances all of which has made my life both easier and harder to bring kindness to peoples lives. 

It’s easier now as I am exposed to a diverse range of people on a daily basis, not many of whom know much about my kindness mission. This makes it quite fun to surprise people with thoughtfulness. 

It can be harder because Archaeology as a career is more often than not back-breaking manual labour. Even though I love it, it wears me out a lot and I come home exhausted regularly. 

However that hasn’t stopped me being kind... 

2019 had already brought with it kindness and encouragement from others for me. 

I’ve continued to joyfully worked to bring a smile to the faces of people I work with, live with and know. 

I wanted to start this year by reminding you that kindness is easy!  AND you can start a year of kindness at any time (even 5 days after New Year like today). If you want to do it don’t let anything stop you, least of all the date. 

So this is a call to kindness if you want to join me. It doesn’t have to be hard. 

For example: 

If you break it down to a weekly kindness schedule : 

Monday’s: smile at a stranger/compliment someone. A compliment could be about their outfit, their adorable pet, their lovely smile, or their ability to keep coming to work everyday when you know they have stuff going on at home or when they are dealing with chronic pain/illness (I have a few friends whose lives are crazy and yet they still show up for me when I need them). 

Tuesday’s: make or buy a hot/cold beverage for someone. it can be offering to get someone a glass of water or remembering and buying them that Double Dirty Chai latte with Coconut Milk they drink on a regular basis. The price or effort is up to you. 

Wednesday’s: take a treat into work to share... it’s hump day on Wednesday and everyone will appreciate a mid-week pick me up (I have been doing this at work - and mostly involved me baking yummy treated on a Tuesday night but this week I took some fruit mince pies in to work (I can’t eat them but they had a packet of 6 fruit mince pies on reduction for £0.05 per back so I grabbed two to make the day more enjoyable for everyone. I got to be kind they got to eat yummy things). If you don’t work regular days etc, make or do something special for your family or friends on a Wednesday if you want to stick to this plan. 

Thursday’s: write a thank you to someone for something good they have done for you. This can be as public as a Facebook post acknowledging their gifts and why you love them so. Or as private as writing them an anonymous hand written note to thank them for generally being a good person. 

Friday’s: do a job or chore for someone else. This can be offering to empty the bin at work or emptying the dishwasher when it’s your housemates/partners turn. It could be raking the leaves for your neighbour, helping them move snow in winter, watering gardens/plants in summer or just checking on an elderly family member/friend/neighbour. 

Saturday’s: Connect with someone you’ve been meaning to contact but keep forgetting to/putting it off. Simply sending a message to a friend or family member that says “I’ve been thinking of you recently, how are things? Hope you are well!” Or writing a letter or email to catch a friend or family member up on all they have been missing in your life. It could be calling someone for a coffee date or organising to go to the movies together. Or it could be sending a care package to a friend in another country (this has made a huge and amazing kindness for me when family and friends have sent stuff my way! 😊). 

Sunday’s: do something to be kind to yourself! This can be having a bath, Reading a book you’ve been wanting to read or even making your favourite tea/coffee/ chocolate/hot Carob drink and taking 5 minutes to sit and enjoy it in silence (yes parents - I know that’s a lot to ask but I hope for your sake you kids sleep sometime!). 

Other things you can do to spice up your kindnesses: 

When it’s someone birthday just send them a message to let them know you know they were born on this day and how special that is to you. If it’s YOUR birthday send a message to your mother (after all she did all the work of growing you inside her for up to 9 months) or a person who has been a mum/parent figure to you to thank them for helping you and keeping you alive this long! Or for teaching you the resilience you needed to stay alive on your own! 

Anytime it’s a special holiday (E.g.  Christmas just gone, Valentine’s, Easter, Hanukkah, Diwali, any festive card giving holiday etc) when you are sending a card, write one thing you are grateful for about that person. It can be hard sometimes but if you think about it, there is a reason you are going to the effort of sending/giving them a card why not make it extra special. 

Do you love books? Do you have a couple extra dollars to make someone’s day? Put some cash (I recommend notes as coins can cause damage to a book) with a post-it note in your favourite book/s at a book shop to contribute to the next person, who opens the book, to purchase it! 

Appreciate the work of those around you like Posties (postmen and women), ambulance workers, Firey’s (fire department workers), nurses, doctors, managers, street cleaners, cleaners in general, garbage men/women, service men and women, retail staff, regular delivery drivers etc. you could always thank them for their work by writing to their work places/ managers to compliment their work or contact these people directly by giving them a thank you note/card. Gratitude is by far one of the nicest and simplest kindnesses around and you can do it verbally or in written form. 

One idea for office workers: 

I like leaving one of our staff little compliments and encouragements at random places in her Post-It Note pad. She knows who does it, but if you were less obvious than I am... You could make it anonymous! Note: I do try to be sneaky but she’s very clever! 

Extra info: 

There are so many ideas if the weekly kindness plan doesn’t work for you! You can check out FB, Instagram, Pinterest, Google and so many places for kindness ideas. 

I am not the first and I won’t be the last to choose to do a kind deed a day. I REALLY WANT people to take this on... it really has changed MY life for the better. And I hope it works for you too! :) 

Here is to another year of kindness. 

Much love to you all, 

Daena x

Sustainable September 2017 - Day Nineteen

SEPTEMBER 19 (TUESDAY)

CLEANING - BI-CARB

Welcome to day Nineteen of Sustainable September 2017. 

Last week I talked about buying or making some "bees wax wraps". I had bought some a while ago and after a house sitting trip they had mysteriously gone missing. I had thought they had been thrown out. So I purchased some more when I went to the Dwellingup Bespoke handmade craft and art market over the weekend. I got some new wax wraps from the same wonderful ladies Undisposed, to replace the last lot that went MIA. As I was cleaning up today though I found a single bag of stuff that hadn't been unpacked since house sitting and guess what was inside? My old wax wraps! So now I have 4 wax wraps all to my self! :) 

Which also means I owe an apology to my family for assuming they had thrown them out! Sorry guys! 

Whilst I was waiting for the Internet to be fixed here (fingers crossed it's done now completely) I spent some time using today's idea "use vinegar for cleaning". I scrubbed the communal kitchen stove with vinegar. And it's before and after pictures are pretty cool. But please don't judge the before pictures too harshly. 

The idea for tomorrow is something that builds on today's idea. 

Sustainable September Day Nineteen: use bi-carb soda. 

Today when I was using the vinegar I had some really tough grime cooked onto the stove so I had to pull out my trusty super Bi-carb soda to help with it. Sometimes vinegar alone doesn't work as well, particularly with stubborn grime like this. 

As you can see the cook rings were caked with grime. So I soaked it with vinegar and added some bi carb for an awesome reaction.

Look at all that bubbling... Glad to know it was working. 

This is what they looked like afterwards with some scrubbing. I didn't do heaps of scrubbing because I wasn't feeling great (still had the headache from yesterday). But it came out pretty good! 

You can see the difference here between the front one and the back one. One with baking soda and vinegar the other without. 

That is probably way too many photos of my stove top. Hehehe. 

But the point is that Bi-carb can be a wonderful addition to any household cleaning routine for tough and stubborn stains. 

Here is a heap of uses for Baking soda in cleaning...

ACTIVITY: use one idea from the video above to test out. Find out how simple and easy it is to use baking soda in your environmentally friendly cleaning routine! 

That's all from me today folks. I hope you are all enjoying Sustainable September. 

If you have any other uses for bi carb or vinegar of you have any other cleaning tips and tricks that are environmentally friendly and sustainable, then let me know. I would love to hear about them. 

Love Daena x

Lent gifting day 38 & 39

Sometimes we have great plans and sometimes it just doesn't happen. 

I've been working really hard to post daily but it didn't quite go to plan yesterday. Yesterday I took my niece down to the park and when I was there I got the starting of a migraine. My sister thankfully was on her way from work so she was able to swing past and pick us both up and take us home. 

By the time I got home I was nauseous and by the time I had had a chance to fill up my water bottle and make sure I had an ice pack I was vomiting. Great topic of conversation, I know. Hehehe. I then proceeded to sleep from 5pm to 11.30am when I was taken to the doctor and then back to bed until almost 6pm. I had basically spent 24 hours in bed (excluding the time I was at the doctors). 

 

Needless to say, by this evening I felt much better, although not 100%. But I got sick and tired of being in bed so I got up. I Had dinner with my family, watched some tv (fairly quietly) with the adults in my family and played a game of cards with my brother in law. All with my sun glasses on! 

Even though I was sick I didn't forget I had to do two days worth of blog posts. I'm making it short and sweet today because I need to. 

Yesterday's giving was another toy. 

 

I've had this "baby" doll for as long as I can remember. But I don't need it anymore and I know there is some little kid out there who will love her like I did when I was younger. So I think she would be in better hands than mine where she can be loved and appreciated. 

 

Today's act of kindness and gifting is also a toy. A "Big Bang Theory" kitty cat called "soft kitty". When you press its paw it sings the soft kitty song that Sheldon makes Penny sing when he's sick in the TV show "Big Bang Theory". See the clip below. 

I was actually given two of these toys a couple of years ago. My niece loved one so much that she used to use it all the time when I didn't live with her. She would crawl into the guest bed with the Soft Kitty and play it over and over and over and over again. The batteries almost died in it from being played so often. She loved it and it apparently reminded her of me. So when she was feeling bad she would climb into the bed I used and hug my toy. Kind of cute. But since I've been living in the same house she has been hugging me and not the toy so it's time to give it up. 

  I gave one away a few months back. But I thinks it's time I pass this cutie off as well. If my niece got some much out of it when she was younger, someone else will love it too. 

I want to make people's lives better. If by giving away some of my stuff I can do that then I am thrilled to. 

My Lenten gifting is not my only act of kindness in the 40 days of lent (which ends on Palm Sunday) but it is one that I feel comfortable photographing and sharing. Sometimes I do kindnesses anonymously so I can't share them here without giving myself away. Sometimes I do kindnesses that other people know about so I can share them and I do here or on Facebook. Sometimes I don't tell anyone because it's not something that I could share without sharing personal information or share something that isn't mine to tell. Kindness is also shown in my discretion.

But the lent gifting I can share because I is mine. I can show you what I'm giving away because often I don't know who it will end up with. I have no attachment to who gets it or where it goes. It is also something that I am giving up for the benefit of another person, group or community. What better Kindness can I do that giving away something every day in Lent? And tomorrow is the end for this "game". Although technically each Sunday during lent isn't counted so it really ends on the Thursday before Easter. Tomorrow is Palm Sunday and the beginning of what the Christian church calls Holy Week. The beginning of all the events that lead up to the crucifixion on Friday and the resurrection on Sunday. 

Even though lent doesn't end until Thursday most people I know give stuff up until Easter Sunday. So it's really a choice to how far you go. I will see how I go tomorrow I may even continue to give things up for charity until Easter Sunday just to push myself. I still have Heaps of stuff in my home that I Could regift. But if you are playing this gifting game too... please feel free to finish whenever you feel you want to. 

Hope this finds you well. 

Love Daena x

Lent gifting day 18

The more I give away the more I find that I want to give. Has that ever happened to you? 

It is the same with kindnesses. The more kindness you bestow on others the more you want to do. It's boarderline addictive. Just with none of the bad side effects! Hehehe. 

Today's kindness and gifting is something that is still in its packet from when I got it back in 2015. This glass from Coca Cola was a freebie from McDonald's. 

 

It's been about 6 years now since I gave up coffee and coke (most strong caffeinated drinks) because of chronic stress induced insomnia. The fact I even own a coke glass is kind of funny. So donating this to someone who like the glasses or loves coke (I know a few) seems far more appropriate than me keeping it in my boxes of stuff in my cupboard. 

Have you looked at what you are using? Does it align with your current lifestyle? Does it align with your values? 

I know for me, owning a coke glass doesn't align with my lifestyle or values. So thankfully I can give it to someone who can use it and whos values and lifestyle aligns with it too. Yay for giving!!! 

 

(Check out my Pinterest board for Kindness Idea to find this quote and many other kindness inspired pictures). 

Much love to you all! 

Love Daena x

Lent gifting day 16

Today I spent some time with my mum helping her get rid off few things. Making space for her to be able to do some of the creative work she thoroughly enjoys. 

Her graph piece (for those following at home) is not as long as mine but she's started getting rid of things to charity which is awesome. My niece is also well ahead of where she is supposed to be this time of Lent, which is awesome!!!! The best part is moving stuff that has been basically useless but has been in our lives for such a long time!

For example, I bought this under garment for a wedding I was involved in ages ago. Like decades ago (okay I'm not that old but it was (I think) for my sisters wedding which was 17 years ago now. So almost decades but definitely a decade a go. Scary. I don't feel that old. 

 

I think I wore it twice for the same dress. Sadly it's been sitting in my closet ever since. It's amazingly still in wonderful condition and it will be perfect for someone else. This cost me about $100 when I bought it all that time ago and if it gets sold at a charity shop they wouldn't ask for even half of that. Sadly it also doesn't fit any longer so I don't know why I've kept it all this time. 

How are your donations going? Are you playing along at home? Have you chosen a charity to donate to yet? If not then find ones close to you that do the most good in your eyes. Do some research to see if their values align with yours. 

Enjoy, 

Love Daena 

Lent gifting day 14

At the end of the year last year I watched Minimalism: a Documentary about the Important Things on Netflix. I learned a lot from this documentary. I thought Minimalism was all about stark bare walls and only owning a few things, or even just being about buying stuff that looked a certain way (Minimalism as in furniture or interior design). From the movie I learned that Minimalism is not just about having "less stuff" but is also about living an Intentional life. The documentary asks what can you contribute to society? Being a kindness ambassador these ideas of intentionality and contributing, more than "having less stuff", struck a cord with me. 

Living intentionally, and in my case doing kind deeds (contributing), resonated because I have been unintentionally doing kind deeds for ages. I've been doing kind deeds for my friends, family members and even the wider community but it has become so second nature to me that I've lost a lot of awareness of what I am actually doing. I have been hosting this Blog since 2011 which is One kindness a day for over 5 years. I do my kindnesses now without thinking. I feel like I've lost the intentionality of those kindnesses. Am I just going through the motions? In the beginning it was a struggle to figure out what I could do to be kind to someone else, the environment and even myself. I have created things like the Sustainable September Series to cover the environmental issues and I post kindnesses we can all do and inspiring videos and articles to Facebook regularly. But apart from that... I've kind of lost my mojo! 

It's partly because of the documentary and wanting to be more intentional that I've gone back to writing my kindnesses in a book. Recording each kindness to learn what works and what doesn't. Just because I've watched the Minimalism documentary doesn't mean I am going to become a minimalist, but I love the idea of intentionality (particularly combined with contribution)! When I was younger I was told to "try out every piece of advice (or piece of information) and see if it fits, like you would try on a shoe. If it fits with your beliefs and values then keep it, if not then discard it". This is how I decide how to live, learn and share. So if something here resonates with you, keep it... if not discard it. 

For me there were a lot of "shoes that fit" in the documentary. Particularly when it comes to consuming and using my purchasing power for good. If you saw my post on Sunday I noticed I "accidentally" bought a dress. So intentionality is becoming more and more important to me. I really want to change the way I relate to money and spend money. I want to be conscious of where I am spending my money and the companies and businesses I support. Simply put, I want to use my money to vote for the kind of future I want. A kind, environmentally friendly place where humans can come together and celebrate their differences and acknowledge their similarities and support each other through this sometimes hard thing called life. 

Side note: if I had decided to spend money on "stuff" this month, buying a dress from an opshop fits with my values and would have been okay to me if i had done it intentionally. If i'd purchased the dress in spite of my decision, consciously, I would have been okay with it. It was completely unconscious and unconsidered and that is what interested me. I have turned spending into an unconscious action when I want my spending to be deliberate. 

I've been listening to some interesting podacasts recently. I didn't really know much about podcasts last month when I discovered the app on my phone. I saw a recommendation for some on Pinterest that got me started. I have recently fallen in love with the podcasts: Optimal Living Daily; 10% Happier with Dan Harris; The Mindful Kind; Writer on the Road; TED Talks Audio; The Slow Home Podcast by Brooke McAlary; and my favourite at the moment is The Minimalists Podcast (by Josh and Ryan). I've been listening to The Minimalists back catalogue and they often speak of making a conscious choice to buy things and using our purchasing power to choose things to buy because we need them not because it is what is cool, hip, the "it thing" or cheap. I am aware that I buy things just because they are cheap not because I actually need them. Then I have this useless thing that I have to find a home for and I get overwhelmed with the stuff. I don't want to be overwhelmed. Life is hard enough without being overwhelmed too. 

Today's kindness Lent Gifting items I bought many years ago because they were cheap. I had no idea of where they would go or go whom. As a result they have NEVER been used and have sat in my "gift box" (the box of stuff I have to give to people when a celebration comes around). 

 

For years I have been hoping that the correct celebration would come around that I could give these trinkets to someone but nothing ever has. 

When I bought them (almost a decade ago) I had a very close Young Adult Church Group. Most of us have since moved on to different opportunities in different places, cities and countries. Sadly we don't often see each other. Most of us are still friends. Because of this distance, I am less and less likely to give this kind of gift to someone. Particularly that now I have a more diverse collection of friendships from all walks of life with a range of beliefs, many that differ from my own greatly. Our values are the same though and so we are friends.

I am even re-evaluating my need for a "gift box". If I don't have to keep a huge pile of "Just In Case" items that's got to be good. I can keep the presents at the store until I need them. No more keeping things I may never use or give to anyone else. Now they can go to someone who will appreciate them. They can escape my "gift box". 

I like that if I actually want to buy something for someone then it doesn't have to be cheap "stuff". I want the right thing for a person rather than giving them something they may not like or need. It also leaves me more money and time to give a person an experience rather than "a thing". I'm learning that experiences are far more valuable to me than any "thing" could be. The memories of those experiences are wonderful and take up lots less space. 

It's funny how giving away one item a day for Lent has me so introspective. For my Christian friends though, they know that that is what Lent is all about. For anyone playing along at home... how is your Lent adventure going? Have you got rid of anything that has made you reevaluate what is important to you? 

If you are just reading this for fun! Hi and welcome! I'm so grateful for you stopping here to read about my life and journey with living a kinder more intentional life. I don't expect you to live the life I live nor do I want you to do something that is against your values or beliefs. I want everyone to live lives they love and live them kindly. No matter what that looks like for you

I hope that my open conversations about my life and about how I have been living a kinder life might inspire someone to do more kind deeds for the people around them. 

Have a wonderful day. 

Love Daena 

. X

Lent gifting day 13

I got to talk to my best friend today who has recently moved interstate. It was so lovely spending some time catching up via Skype. 

One of the things I found in my recent dejunk Session was about 200 postcards from around the world that I've bought and never used. I think I've mentioned them before. I've started sending them to my best friend. Every couple days I've written one to send which is fun and I hope makes her feel special. 

I love the way that receiving snail mail makes me feel better. It is a pretty simple kindness to do too. Sending an encouraging letter or postcard to someone makes them know you have been thinking of them. Plus in my case, it used postcards that would other wise go to waste. In Australia it costs $1 to send a postcard anywhere inside Australia. Of course it cost more to send stuff internationally but I often like to send nice bits and pieces to my friends overseas. 

Kindness doesn't have to be expensive. A one off postcard (you can make your own) to a friend or family member and the cost of postage can mean the world to someone. Getting a card to know you care can be something that lightens a day. 

Back to the Lent challenge. 

 

I recently wore this dress out as part of a Tinkerbell costume. To a Disney themed night at a city nightclub... it was so much fun!!!! I danced for hours and hours. So good. And I'm so glad I had flat shoes not heels like my friend in the picture next to the green legs (which happened to be my green legs). 

 

My friend, who is the other set of legs in this picture, went as the fantastically Mad Hatter! We also had Megara from Hercules, Esmeralda from the Hunchback Of Notre Dame, The Little Mermaid (dressed as Ariel when she was voiceless and on two feet) and her prince, Eric! So much fun to sing loudly and dance to Disney Music. We also danced to other 90s music, a fun reminder of my childhood! :) 

Anyway... the dress. A friend had given me the dress a few months ago as part of a group of things to be gone through and then donated to charity. I pulled this out to keep in our costume box. Then I decided to do the Lent giving and I knew I was going to be donating this dress because I really didn't need to dress up as Tinkerbell any time soon... or so I thought. 

Then the Disney themed night club night happened so I decided to actually get one wear out of this before I would pass it on to someone who needs it. This one isn't actually going to go in the charity bag today but be given to a friend who needs it for another fairy themed event. I'm going to give it to her to keep if she wants or donate on to someone else who needs it in the future. It's a pretty good quality dress that was once longer and had been a bridesmaids dress. It makes a fantastic Tinkerbell costume. 

It was awesome giving this dress a last hurrah, for me at least. I will also have lots of fond memories to pass along with the dress. I won't forget the memories but I don't need to worry about keeping the dress. Plus someone gets something they need FOR FREE! Winning on all fronts! :) 

Here are some words on my favourite subject kindness... "My wish for you is that you continue. Continue to be who you are, to astonish a mean world with your kindness!" Maya Angelou. 

I hope you think of a whole range of simple kindness ideas you can do to astonish this world with Kindness. 

Love to you all, 

Daena x

Sustainable September 2015 - Day Twenty Seven

Welcome, Welcome,

How did your adventure go with OpShopping? Did you get a thrift shop buy that was so good you have to share? I would love to see or hear about it. :)

Half of my personal library is from the OpShops of Perth, WA. I so love books! :) And now my closet is also filled with clothes from them too.

A Salvo's Op-Shop on the way to the train on thursday. I was walking in the heat and stopped to buy a hat so I didn't get sunburnt.

All the books in the Salvos Store! So many to choose from! :)

The idea I present to you today, for tomorrow, is about the last part of the 5 Rs from the Zero Waste Home book.

September 27: Buy/Make a Compost Bin. 

The last section of the Zero Waste Home, Bea Johnson, talks about how the last thing that needs to be dealt with in a Home that is reducing its waste is the rotting stuff. Things that can be composted. In her book she lists several different systems and ways that your organic matter can be composted! :) 

One of those is the compost bin. Like mine. I totally forgot to photograph it today, sorry!

I did love the idea of "Trench composting". The trench composting is where you dig a 12" deep hole (30cm deep) and put your compost in there and then cover it back over. This is excellent for camping, renting (where you are not allowed a compost bin) and other options.

I have a black compost "bin". I have a bucket for scraps in the house that I then empty into the bin outside to compost. I know there is worms in there too because I have found them in the compost I moved at the bottom.

It really depends on what type of compost bin you are looking for. I remember when I bought mine that there were so many to choose from. So think about what you need before you go and purchase anything. Some can take more types of organic matter than others.

"Compost is organic material that can be added to soil to help plants grow. Food scraps and yard waste currently make up 20 to 30 percent of what we throw away, and should be composted instead. Making compost keeps these materials out of landfills where they take up space and release methane, a potent greenhouse gas. All composting requires three basic ingredients:

• Browns - This includes materials such as dead leaves, branches, and twigs.
• Greens - This includes materials such as grass clippings, vegetable waste, fruit scraps, and coffee grounds.
• Water - Having the right amount of water, greens, and browns is important for compost development.

Your compost pile should have an equal amount of browns to greens. You should also alternate layers of organic materials of different-sized particles. The brown materials provide carbon for your compost, the green materials provide nitrogen, and the water provides moisture to help break down the organic matter." (EPA 2015)

I hope this helps explain the Composting better.

KINDNESS IDEA: Support Second Bite. 

Second Bite is a program that helps feed people in need with food that would otherwise end up in landfill. 

"SecondBite redistributes surplus fresh food to community food programs around Australia. Food is donated by farmers, wholesalers, markets, supermarkets, caterers and events. This high-quality surplus food is redistributed to community food programs that support people who are homeless, women and families in crisis, youth at risk, indigenous communities, asylum seekers and new arrivals." (2015)

It is an awesome program. If you can help, please do. They are awesome!

I hope this finds you all well, 
Love and hugs, 
Daena xx

Sustainable September 2015 - Day Three

Good Day my Darling Kindness-ers, 

Yesterday we heard about how bad plastic is for the environment. So my dastardly plan is actually to switch a lot of usual single use plastic items (or plastic things in general) with another item, during Sustainable September. The switch with be preferably renewable, definitely reusable, hopefully decomposable.

September 3: Buy and use reusable bags or paper bags. 

 

I have used this Sustainable September Idea before. In fact it was last year on Day 8 (check it out here). There are some awesome videos on the Day 8 link too.

I think using reusable bags is still important. It is one of the most important Sustainable September acts to do. If you have the big old bags that are square and have a chunk of plastic in the bottom AND that don't roll up, all you need is to put your remembering hat on! Get remembering to put them in your car (or on your bike) then remember to get them out of the car (or off your bike) and into the shop.

I always have a collection of roll-up bags that I always have in my handbag. That way if anyone needs a bag for anything they can use mine. I can take all my bits home without having to take another plastic bag to my house. 

KINDNESS IDEA: lend or give a friend of family member a reusable shopping bag. I have given some of my stockpile of reusable bags to people who have had their plastic ones split on them. It makes a huge difference knowing your bag is not going to split at the drop of a hat. 

Kindness idea 2: If you are in the car park of a supermarket, return trolleys to their bays or the store makes a huge difference. I have done this for strangers on occasions. Its a nice idea if you are already returning your own trolley after your weekly shop. 

Okay. Todays Sustainable September is short and sweet. Remember to take your bags if you have them, buy some if you dont already have them... then USE the reUSEable bag!!! :) 

Hope this finds you all well, 

Much love, 

Daena x

Sustainable September Day Twenty Seven kindness

Hello again...

How are you? Did you learn much about how you are investing your money? How about your superannuation?

Its all about the Money, Money, Money! ;) lol

This is the actual Australian Currency - I often have my international friends tell me it looks like play money. But I assure you it IS real!!!!!

Anyway's tomorrows Sustainable September kindness is...

Saturday – 27 September – AS PER MUMS REQUEST – Reuse your old hand knitted or crocheted jumpers, scarves, beanies, leg warmers or other things that you no longer have a use for... either donate them, if they are in good condition, just as they are or unravel them and turn them into blankets for the homeless, for charities, for elderly people in nursing homes, or for Winter Blanket Appeals. 

If you can't knit or crochet then find someone who can. Or check out a YouTube clip or buy a book and learn how to Knit or Crochet to make your own blankets or other things for charities. 

Or you can check out these YouTube clips to learn how to knit:

 

and to Crochet:

Or you can join a social craft group to learn how. There are so many ways to learn how to Crochet or Knit. :)

This is me making a "Scrap blanket" with crochet from all the left over pieces from mums knitting. some of the scraps are only as big as a 30cm (1ft) ruler.

Let me know how you go! I would love to hear (or see) how you go mastering some of these techniques.

And gentlemen, don't think this is only a women's thing! I know a lot of men who knit and crochet! :) Its an awesome skill to have to make your own clothes and your own blankets or scarves.

Much love to you all,
Luv Daena x

Sustainable September Day Two Kindness

Hey there,

Two days in a row and here is a blog just casually waiting for you... you are impressed right? I know I am! :) How did you go today with using Public transport today? Or are you still using public transport? Did you ride your bike? Or walk?

I didn't have work today but I had to meet mum, after an appointment, so I walked to our meeting point. Here is a photo of me on my walk...

Tomorrows kindness, that I am telling you about today, is about learning how to recycle in your area. A lot of the websites I found are Western Australian based but a quick "Google" will help you find recycling information in your area, city, state or country.

Tuesday - 2 September – Recycle by putting any recyclable materials in specific recycle bins rather than putting them in general rubbish bins. There is a website that can tell you what to recycle in your suburb called Recycling Near You (Australia only). For more information on Recycling in Western Australia check out this site: http://www.wasteauthority.wa.gov.au/ as they have information on residential and industrial recycling! For information of Plastic Recycling and PET numbers and their meanings read more here.

I hope you are enjoying this new type of Kindness - Kindness to our future generations, by looking after their world.

Much love to you all,
Luv Daena x 

Sustainable September Day One Kindness

Hey my beautiful people, 

Here is the first day for Sustainable September - a kindness idea for the environment, to implement tomorrow. 

 

Monday - 1 September – Take the train or ride your bike, rather than drive your car, to work. There are so many benefits to both you and the environment. “Public transport is at least twice as energy efficient as private cars; a full bus produces 377 times less carbon monoxide than a full car. Each full standard bus can take more than 50 cars off the road while a full train can take more than 600 cars off the road.” Read more benefits of public transport here. Sydney Trains has an excellent way of describing it here. One of the benefits of walking from the train to work, for me, is actually this beautiful view.

I hope you enjoy what I have in-store for us all this month, as I have lots of ideas.

Hope you are all well.
Luv Daena 

It's my birthday... 5 years of kindness

Hello my beautiful friends, 

So today is my birthday and I'm left remembering what the last 5 years have brought me! Why only the last 5 years you ask? You see the last 5 years have been such an interesting experience for me, because 5 years ago today I started what was to be a year Long project, called Project 25 -Random Acts of Kindness. It started on my 24th birthday & was to be completed by my 25th birthday! I asked people all over the world to do a kind deed and report it to me! Then I could have (for my next birthday) a book (I'm a bibliophile after all) of all these awesome things people had done because I'd asked them to do it! And I was going to participate too! :) 

I wanted a 1000 kindnesses over the space of a year! 

What I got was...36! 

Okay so it didn't quite go to plan, but I learnt something so profound that I decided to give it a go. I learnt that if I wanted people to do a kindness, I had to do it too! I had to show them that they weren't alone, that I wasn't just asking them to do something I wasn't prepared to do myself! I had to lead by example! 

So I decided when the new year came around i would start this whole thing a fresh and show people just how simple, easy and yet life changing kindness could be! And this is how 365days of kindness begun! And the way I was going to show people how easy this could be was by doing a kind deed a day and blogging about it! 

I am the first to admit I am not a "regular blogger"! And by that I mean, I write everyday for two weeks and then not again for a few months. I'm as unpredictable as a busy woman trying to hold onto a scrap of sanity (perfect description for this year in particular). But you have stuck in there and supported me. People from all over the world have started following me, on this blog! whether they started following me by accident or on purpose I'll never know, but i am grateful for your encouragement and support! I'm not perfect, or regular in my blogging but I have shared photos, stories, friends, family, inspirations, books, cakes, weddings, celebrations, links, blogs and videos with you all in my attempt to tell you what kindness means to me! 

Life has not been easy, and I know there are people out there who are struggling with a thousand times worse problems than I have! That's why kindnes is so important. We can share the loss, sadness, grief, but also the hope, love and gentleness we have found in friends and strangers who have helped us & given us kindness in our hardest and even in our best times! 

I want to acknowledge a few people, the original supporters! The few who had followed me from day one, (mainly because I originally brow beat you in to it! Lol) And they are... my family! 

To my mum who I most definitely wouldn't be here without! She spent 26weeks in the hospital trying not to have me! She survived with a semblance of sanity after those 26 weeks of bed rest away from the rest of her family so I could be born! And Even then I wasn't a well baby! And she's been working pretty hard to keep me alive ever since! This is a woman who believes all mums should get the presents on the child's birthday because they put all the effort in on the day the child celebrates! And after all the effort she put in to making me a reality... Well...I definitely agree! mum, about the present, I'll see what I can do for you! ;) lol! Thanks for encouraging me and pointing out those kindnesses I don't see sometimes! :) You are one of the strongest women I know & you are beautiful! :) thank you for all your hard work, your love and support! :) 

My sister, who was one of the first people to do a kindness for the original project, and who continues her support today with the Facebook page! She is a gem! Another tough woman who is filled with a strong sense of justice and a willingness to make the world a better place! Thanks for being an encourager and a champion for this world! Thanks babe! 

My dad, who is no longer with us, would listen as I read out my blogs and dutifully flip through the pages of my kindness albums (even when he wasn't too sure what was going on)! Thanks for being a great role model and leading by example! You were always there to help anyone who needed it! Thanks dad! Miss you! 

My brother in law... One of the best men I know! Thanks for supporting all of us. And agreeing with V to let me stay so I has somewhere to go when my life was falling apart! Thanks for being strong for your wife and your kids through some really hard times! For leading by example and doing lots of "extracurricular activities" to support your kids! :) thanks for being a rock! Us gals, we ain't easy to be around! But you've done a great job! :) 

My niece & nephew continually teach me what kindness is! They have placed such trust in me as a "good role model" for them! Thank you for reminding me to have fun & "bounce", for sharing in kindnesses, nerdiness & books! And for loving me even when I'm grumpy or I tell you off! You really are great kids! :) don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise! 

To my "adopted" family who have and continue to encourage & support me in both my kindnesses & in my day to day "ordinary life": Tanya, Isaac, Eva, Liam, Taylor, Laura, Jamie, Big D, Ben, Lisa, Bobbie, Sandie, Terry, Paulene, Bev, Judy, Faye, Sarah, Dino, Autumn, Bel, Cat, Lance, Kayleigh, Matthew, Lorraine, Chris... And I know there are so many more! Please forgive me if I haven't names you specifically (it's 2.30am my brain isn't working at it's optimum). But please know I am so very grateful to you all for you love, support and encouragement! 

Who would have thought a little idea 5 years ago would have been so successful! Maybe not every one has taken up doing a kindness a day... But imagine if they did?! There would be so many lives changed and more lives altered for the better! :) even if everyone did an intentional kind act this week? it won't make any real difference to me, but to a stranger their lives will be a little lighter and a little better for a little while! And that's all we can ever hope to do! 

Hope you all enjoy my 29th birthday with me and that you bring a smile to someone's face, today in particular! :) it's a good day to be kind! 

Much love to you all 

<3 Daena x

January 27, 2014

Hey lovelies, 

on the 27th I got to work preparing & planning more stuff for my best friends kitchen tea & hens party. Spent an hour and a half having a planning meeting with the mother of the bride. 

This is a photo of my book of secrets for my best friends pre-wedding parties! :) 

I did some cleaning at my sisters house, because they are away. I also fed my niece & nephews fish & chickens! :) 

I also helped another friend by drying dishes after dinner & desert at her house! 

I hope you are all doing well! 

Much love, 

Daena x

January 15, 2014

Hello beautiful people, 

Today's kindness was a little embarrassing, as you will see in a minute, because I let it get this bad! But I did this for mum whilst she was sleeping today, so it was a nice surprise for her to see when she woke up! 

Yes... That is our messy stove top! See... How embarrassing! But I finally sorted that out so mum didn't have to & so it was more welcoming for visitors! 

It now looks like this...

All shiny & clean! Much better! I did it after I cooked lunch & dinner too so we had delicious meals & then a thoroughly clean kitchen! :) 

I also sent messages of love to a friend who is struggling with health issues! She needed to know someone is thinking of her! And be reminded of how wonderful she is! :) 

Plus I made tea & hot water for mum & a visiting friend! 

All in all a good days work! 

Stay safe! 

Luv Daena x