Tag: Home

This Earth Day, Let’s Reconsider Our Lawn Care

- Alexis Leave a comment
Purple wildflowers and weeks sprout up among blades of grass in a residential lawn

Today is the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day. Lately, while spending so much time at home, I’ve been thinking about the impact of our lawn and garden activities on our ecosystems. As I work in my dining room and go for walks around my neighborhood, I’ve become more aware of how many of my neighbors regularly have their lawns sprayed with synthetic fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides. The homogeneously green, weed-free grass might fit a contemporary perfectionist aesthetic, but I cringe each time I see a TruGreen or LawnDoctor truck roll down the street or notice the little flags in the yards designed to alert people that it was just sprayed.

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Some Upsides of Social Distancing, Part I

- Alexis Leave a comment
Black and white photo of a toddler walking up stairs in a hillside

Here in my relatively isolated part of Tennessee, I’ve been doing the social distancing thing for about four weeks now. While my daily life has shifted drastically, I’m very lucky that I continue to have a steady salary, have not contracted the coronavirus, and have not lost any loved ones to COVID-19. I acknowledge that I write this post from a place of significant privilege, and my heart goes out to the many, many people who are suffering terribly because of the pandemic.

For the fortunate folks like myself, I think it helps to look on the bright side as much as possible. Adapting to this new (temporary) normal was challenging, and several weeks ago, I felt a lot of fear and anxiety. But I’ve settled into my current way of life, and it’s really not so bad. There are things that I miss, of course, but there are also significant secondary benefits to social distancing. In this series of posts, I’ll highlight some of the good things, as I see them. (I’m taking these a few at a time because finding the quiet time and focused energy to write long blog posts is is difficult now that I’m working from home with a toddler.)

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My On-Again, Off-Again Relationship with Decluttering and Tidying Up

- Alexis 3 Comments

A black metal filing cabinet with papers on top and folders learning against each side
My filing cabinet, surrounded by papers that have yet to be filed.

Yesterday, I spent some time tidying up my living room.  I hadn’t planned to spend my morning that way, but I came downstairs and saw the ever-growing pile of papers on the table that serves as a catch-all, and I just couldn’t bear to look at it anymore.  This is usually how cleaning goes for me.  I have no set schedule for it, no weekly cleaning routine; it happens in bursts when I feel the urge.

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The Weekend Listen

- Alexis Leave a comment

A pair of wireless headphones for podcast listening

I listen to a lot of podcasts while driving, working out, and doing chores around the house. In this weekly feature, I’ll tell you about one episode I particularly enjoyed that week.

My pick for this week is Dear Sugar Radio’s episode Location, Location, Location.  Dear Sugar is hosted by Cheryl Strayed (of Wild fame) and Steve Almond, who answer letters from listeners asking questions about love and life.  It’s kind of a modern-day advice column, in audio format.  This week, they tackle the topics of home (as in, what makes a place feel like home?), relocation, and travel, in the context of relationships.

Want more podcasts?  Here are my runners-up for the week:

Need a tutorial on how to listen to podcasts?  Here you go.

Are you listening to a podcast that I haven’t mentioned yet?  Let us know about it in the comments!