Well with the end of January in site I am claiming victory in my challenge. One month and no newly mass-produced junk has found it’s way into my life. I have passed up many things that I needed and have managed to survive… no more than survive, thrive. In denying myself I have actually gained something. This something is more valuable than anything you could find in a dollar section (I know, crazy, right?!). I have gained a sense of liberation, I don’t need stuff, it isn’t that defines me.
With victory comes a new chapter… February.
I know I have hinted at my February change: to eat more locally, and I’m sticking with it. I admit that it will be difficult in Virginia… in February, but I feel up for the challenge. ”How locally?” you may ask… well I’m shooting for about 500 miles, the closer the better. I have been researching local options and have found farmers markets that sell all kinds of local products that I cannot get from my CSA.
Today I was actually planning on heading to the farmers market, but no luck, snow! In Michigan it would have gone on as planned, but days like these are definitely reminders that I’m not in Michigan any longer. So I headed to my Mecca (Whole Foods) to seek out options, and there were many. I was relieved to find that even in the dead of winter I could easily find some local produce.
So cheers to victory and to new beginnings! 
With love,
Rosie
I like it! How lucky that you have a farmer’s market all year round. Mine shut down in December. And I live in Michigan! This summer I am going to can and freeze a lot of produce from the market so that I don’t have to buy non-local during the winter. I’ve already banned myself from buying tomatoes from the grocery store in the wintertime- they are so plastic tasting!
Yes, those tomatoes are awful! I don’t know where in Michigan you’re from, but I do know that Kalamazoo and Lansing have local markets that are year round… I used to frequent them, but as you get further north it’s harder. It would surprise me if Traverse City has something like this too
I am so excited that your Jan change went well. Isn’t it a great feeling to know that you can live with less!! Your Feb change sounds great and you are off to a wonderful start. It is so nice to have a natural food store around to help us with our eating local choices!
Suzy
I love your January goal. I’m going to have to remember it! I really want to eat locally, too. And in rural Nevada it’s so hard. There isn’t anything but desert for 200 miles all around me. No farms at all. So I had to expand to the Western US. I think I’m going to shrink that down a bit to bordering states, which would cut out Washington, but leave me with California, Oregon, and Idaho…plenty of good growing stuff there! (I also get Utah, which has plenty of farms, and Arizona.) Good luck!
If you have California, you’re golden
It seems all the produce at my market is from California!
Found you through One Small Change and love what you’re doing. We joined a CSA this winter and have just entered the white root vegetables part of winter (we live in the mountains of New Mexico). I had no idea there was such a thing as white carrots, but there’s a (cloth) sack of them in my fridge right now. I think spring will never have tasted better than after this year! Just counting the days till rhubarb season!
[...] 4, 2010 by withloverosie Well, it appears that I have picked the wrong month to start eating locally. With the amount of snow we’ve had, and with what’s predicted there will be no [...]