Adventures in Humaning Adventures in Humaning

Hello again!

Frank and I return with a follow up to our previous show about our familiarity with market foods vs the weeds outside. We're both new-ish to foraging - but I have a year's worth of paying attention AND a mentor to guide me... and Frank has a passion, an understanding of the nutrient riches out there, and a crazy frustration because he feels lost in the weeds - so to speak.

In this show - we chat about some of those frustrations and get around to recommending resources and approaches to getting passed the road blocks to collecting and eating wild foods in your brain.

I go off on a wild tangent about pollen in the rock record. I have a lot to learn about living pollen - having only experienced the fossilized remains (queue the massive googling).

Some resources mentioned in the show:

Arthur Haines
Sam Thayer
Steve Cooksey
Daniel Vitalis

We have also received our first carrier pigeon! Jen asks about ticks and what we do about them. Frank refers her to a great episode that Daniel Vitalis does for one of his Rewild Yourself episodes with Stephen Harrod Buhner.

Well Hello! We've missed you...

Frank and I are back after a bit of a hiatus wherein we chose... to live our lives ;) We've both moved into new homes and we're both facing serious change.

Some would say, Adventure. That's how I'm approaching life anyway.

Speaking of change - it's Springtime. Things are most definitely changing outside. Trees have leaves, lawns everywhere are facing mowers, and farmer's markets are in full force in my neck of the woods.

In this episode, we begin our journey into the relatively unknown by starting with what we do know, in this case, about veggies. I'd wager that most everyone can identify lettuce, broccoli, carrots, and potatoes. Why is that? Well, these are foods that our parents and teachers ate, foods that we can buy in the grocery store and at the farmer's market. They are commonly cultivated in large quantities in a field, or even in small quantities in a backyard.

But why is it that when we look outside, all we can identify is grass vs. weeds? OK, maybe we have a few things down, like dandelions and pine trees and daisies... but, the rest of 'nature' is full of weeds?

Answer: We weren't born into a society that uses them as food anymore. We are absolutely unfamiliar with the edible 'weeds' around us.

Frank and I chat a lot about this in this show. We're both fledgling foragers - beginning to actually incorporate wild foods into our lives.

And there are sooo many reasons why.

This show is probably a Part 1 show - where we do a little compare and contrast between veggies in the store, and wild foods from nature (nutritionally, economically, ecosystem-ally). We hope to create awareness about the treasure-trove of free, nutrient dense foods that are probably in your yard (that you might be trying to get rid of). This show is begging for a Part 2 where we talk about where to start your foraging adventure.

I give a shout out to a show that I did with Sam Thayer on The Roots of Health. And I even butcher the titles of his books, Nature's Garden and Forager's Harvest.

Have a listen - send us some feedback or tell us about your favorite wild food. We'd love to try it!

Cheers!
Meredith & Frank

Join Frank and Meredith as they fanboy/fangirl with Katy Bowman. They discuss topics from Katy's book Movement Matters. Those conversations include:
What is the conventional definition of nature?
Are we the single unique thing in the universe?
What is the Katy Bowman definition of nature? It's all about the discordance of rates for change things these days.
Find out the round about way that Katy realized that she was part of an ecosystem.
How do you reconnect with your natural ecosystem? Short story: Transition. But... you could
Quantify things - Butt to chair ratio, indoor to outdoor time
Because we can’t see something, we can’t investigate those questions
We wanted to ask Katy about getting naked in nature. But ended up talking about her experience with cold thermogenesis...
“When you’re in the river, you’re part of the river for the time that you are in it” ~KBow, 2017
Think about how a butterfly adapts to its environment - not ready for flight when it’s out of the chrysalis. You are a butterfly ;)
We're immobilized by our situation. Or so we perceive.
Movement is intrinsically linked to what it means to be human, but it’s never really considered…
Life is dynamic. Movement matters.

Minimalism.

Does that word sound stark, terrible, emotionless, and sad?

I used to, to me (Me = Meredith in this case).

But today - I see crazy opportunity, and even health associated with that word.
Today's show marks a starting point for me. Frank and I discuss our recent run-in with the concept / approach of minimalism. To us, minimalism is very ancestral. It's about re-prioritizing relationships and experiences over 'stuff'. It's about recognizing consumerism and waste, and actively opting out. It's also about discovering (we hope!) the personal health gains, more time, more sleep, less worry, easier health.

In this show, you'll find out...

We kind of think we've been minimalists living amongst our stuff for a long time.
Minimalism invokes less - but maybe it's really maximizing life. It’s a word of abundance.
From an ancestral perspective, minimalism feels right. The two approaches are really very congruent. Traditional ways were minimalist by nature.
We talk about consumerism… about that shirt or hat that you buy because it's such a great deal. The one that isn't made to last, has a huge carbon footprint, and you really don't like anyway.
The cost of a thing vs. the value of a handmade craft.
I set the stage for my awareness of minimalism. Through divorce and christmas ornaments… and my want for a tiny house.
Recognizing that minimalism is a thing - a movement that you can join.
It’s a way toward freedom, control, toward declutter, toward creating time and space, saving money, toward elevating relationships and experiences in your life.
There is no object that should be more important than a relationship.
What to do with all of the old ‘sentimental’ stuff.
The idea to multipurpose things. I have an idea for a table/desk/bed thing.
Frank challenged to not research on google.
What minimalism means to me - clothes, thrift, outlets.
We chat about zero waste home.
Vitamin awareness (thanks to Katy Bowman for this phrase).
How much energy can you take on yourself instead of outsourcing?

We'll re-visit this topic in 6 months time. Check in with the progress :)

I wonder why I'm drawn to the word 'human'... why isn't this 'adventures in peopling'. Frank & I have ideas about this...

https://soundcloud.com/adventuresinhumaning
https://www.facebook.com/justhumaning/
http://forwardhealthcoach.com/
https://www.facebook.com/FranklyWell/

Frank & Meredith give a few examples of what it means to become a 'healthy skeptic'. They discuss fat, dairy, wild foods, GMO's, antibiotics... Frank ends this show with a crazy good analogy.

More info here: http://fromthisdayforwardhealthcoach.com/adventures-in-humaning-episode-8/