[quote author=alkhemst]
[quote author=Laura ]
A: Changing the mode of self-presentation and self-representation is the most basic.
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There's something interesting with these two things mentioned:
1) Self-presentation
2) Self-re-presentation
Firstly, I feel while its important how we come across and what our actions and habits are externally, what's more important is what's going on internally as there lies the intentions and motivations behind that all.
If that's true, maybe this makes sense:
1) Self-presentation: How we habitually present ourselves to ourselves - in other words the stories we tell ourselves everyday about ourselves based on something past, nolonger relevant (if ever) and limited view of reality.
2) Self-representation: How we can change that mode by engaging our awareness everyday to re-presenting ourselves in a more correct way. In other words getting into the habit of telling ourselves a different story about ourselves that is more aligned with objective reality.
Anyway I've been struggling with doing this and I keep coming to see that I'm just running this old script about myself that's not even real. So that's just how I took what the Cs said here.
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On a more material front, but one which has led me to some surprising positive results, is my choice in clothing.
Specifically, I began to choose clothes which were not made by slaves. This, I think, resonates deeply with what one wishes to see in the world.
Does the outer layer you walk around in every day, the square footage of your personal canvas that people see, exist as a result of people suffering in third world factories?
I've become a fan of Roots Clothing; you can get leather shoes and boots, (which look and feel great, and are built to last), which are made by people earning a living wage. My boots bear a little label which says, "Made in Canada with some imported components" -I'm not certain what the imported components are, but I think it might be lace eyelets and possibly the rubber soles. It's hard to find shoes not made by slaves, but this is as close as I was able to come.
_http://www.roots.com/ca/en/shoes/mens/boots/
I am constantly walking around with a backpack, using it nearly every day. For a long while, I'd use a cheap backpack made in China. It would wear out and fall apart after a year of use, and I'd replace it with another one. I decided to bite the bullet and try to find something made in a non-sweatshop factory. There are a few more options for this sort of thing than with shoes, and I found a great little company in the U.S. called DeluthPack.
_https://www.duluthpack.com/
Again, these people make really well-crafted gear, and while more expensive than a cheapie backpack, they'll last far longer, so the lifetime cost balances out.
I recently ordered some jeans from Justice Clothing, which is a small company that orders only from factories which provide a living wage to their employees. -This one was a bit rocky, with my order being delayed for a couple of months, but the owner kept updating me and my order, (two pairs of pants) was just shipped a few days ago. Hopefully they'll fit! It really does seem like a small company which could probably use an accountant; there seemed to be a lot of heart but it sounded like the owner was doing all the jobs.
_http://justiceclothing.com/
When it comes to other material items, computer equipment is big one... That's a much tougher one. It's nearly ALL made by slaves. So far, I've been making do with used units I repair myself, figuring my dollars aren't going directly to factory owners, but my equipment still passed through hands which bled. I still find myself excited about new innovations in computer technology, so there is some hypocrisy happening there which needs attention. I've not figured out a clean way through all of that yet.
Anyway...
This has been a little project I've been running in the background of my life for a while now, but it has had an effect I can literally feel; I know that often people who focus on fair trade goods are characterized as snobs and lampooned thusly, and perhaps there is some fair call for that, but I also think that maybe this is just a reaction from a ponorized society, ridiculing those who choose the more difficult option.
In any case, I feel like less of a hypocrite just walking around every day and that this has increased my own feeling of self-worth and being worthy of a world I want to live in; that is, being a citizen deserving of a psychologically healthy space in the world because that is what I am choosing to help others have a little better access to through my economic activities. Incremental shifts. I wanted to share the fruits of my search here.
Does anybody else have little steps they have taken which they might share?
Where does one get a good Winter coat?
I'm thinking layers of sweaters made locally with a wind breaker of some kind might be better in any case and perhaps easier to source.
