For Free: One Blue Dress (and then some!)

Just wanted to share something with you all:

I'm giving this dress away.
I know, big deal, huh?

But it is a big deal, because there is a network of folks just giving things away according to peoples' needs, and they're doing it just because they can.

Not for a tax writeoff.

Not for something in return.

Not even for some kind of charity drive.

They are doing this just because they can, just because they want to, and because they know it will help people out. Picture something like eBay, (but with less stuff) and everything is free. Not a huge, come and take it all yard sale mess, but an individually posted, caring connection of person to person.

Someone, somewhere will wear this dress to prom, saving herself about a hundred dollars that she may not even have. That's better than sitting in my closet, perfect and unused.

Not only does this repurposing help financial need, it is good for our world. Reusing things can cut down our carbon footprint, a little bit at a time.

And there's the people element to an organization like this: who knows what kind of person will come to my house to pick this up? Maybe she will be the ray of sunshine that I could use on a depressed day, or maybe I can be that to her. Who knows what could happen? Imagine all of the personal connections that could be made if everyone could share what they don't use anymore. No Goodwill, no Wal-Mart, no classified ads.

So check this website out, guys, because its great. Twoshirts.org. Spread the word. Give. Change the world.

Peace to you all.

Just what IS the Urban Rebellion, Anyhow??

...A Manifesto of Sorts...

People have been asking this of late. Although we have never developed a clichéd mission statement, we have come up with a little bit of reading for you:

The Urban Rebellion is a gestating movement. It is a concept that, if put into practice, would make the world just a little bit better, a little bit more efficient. Maybe a lot more.

The Urban Rebelion is basically an exchange of knowledge, talent, and time.

The Urban Rebellion is not a religion, a system, or a profit venture of any kind.

...How it Began...

Have you ever wandered the aisles of Wal-Mart and found yourself buying the same mass produced jeans as the next guy? The jeans designed somewhere in LA, knocked off from a designer line of two years ago, produced somewhere in China, or Indonesia, or Pakistan and shipped over here on a huge ocean liner by the million for your buying pleasure? Yeah, those jeans.
Do you ever get the feeling that you're being forced into a mold? That your personality, your diet, your spending habits, even your mood is being shaped by huge corporations somewhere in glass towers that you'll never inhabit?
Do you ever look around you and wonder how to break free of that mold- to not just survive but live, to not just consume but taste, to utilize your natural talents rather than sitting in a corporate box for38.5 hrs per week, performing loathsome and meaningless tasks..?

Nobody here is going to rescue you from your job, or your mortgage payment, or your Monday night football games on tv. But we just might give you the impetus to plant a garden, build a piece of furniture, make a personal connection, or maybe, just maybe, think just a little bit different. Perhaps all that will happen when you visit the Urban Rebellion is that we put a smile on your face. Maybe we'll give you a morsel of food for thought, maybe we'll make you angry.

We're not a bunch of vegetarian hippie environmentalists, or whatever you might call them, but we are impassioned about lowering our impact on the world we call home. We aren't gourmet foodies, but we do have a liking for locally grown, home cooked meals. We aren't avid crafters, but we love a good tutorial now and then.
We shun Wal-Mart and all that it means to the United States. We despise government corruption, corporate lobbying, and our American culture of greed and consumerism.
We love green building, handmade useful things, and spontaneous travel.
We feel that knowledge is power, but should be accessible and open to all. We want to share what knowledge we have with you, and learn what tidbits you may be able to offer us. We love interesting things outside of the common loop of the information stream, and we know that there is news everyday that is pushed down and unreported because it does not always serve the best interests of media moguls. We do not postulate conspiracy theories, per se, but we are open to discussion ;)

But while we are moving forward into a bright new horizon, we are also looking backward at the cycles and treasures of history. No civilization, no matter how progressive, can bear to leave behind the lessons and triumphs of their forebears. Getting back to some of the old ways, like canning, eating in season, and making things by hand will be good for our souls.

We will never subject ourselves to trends just because they are trends. We just want a community of people who have found a way to escape the rat race. We hope to see a system of barter and learning that will usher in a new age of personal accountability. If you're on board, let us know!

Have a great week!
~Sarah & Michael

Boycott.

I almost did it. Today, after weeks- nay, months- of a difficult boycott I almost caved.

We had been getting more and more tired of Wal-Mart over the past few years, the endless aisles of cheaply manufactured goods, the regrettable customer service, the negative impact on the economy. A friend of ours held a job there for a few months, literally scraping the bottom of the barrel for employment. The pure abuse he suffered as a human being and a man was disgusting.

Then, late last winter, I snapped. I was shopping for luggage. My husband had a business trip coming up, and I and our oldest daughter were going to be accompanying him to London, expenses paid! Out of pure habit, I hit the local Wal-Mart in search of affordable suitcases. I shouldered my way into the store, past the proletariat crowd lingering at the snack bar, past the utterly disinterested non-greeter standing in the entrance, past the cashier gossiping in front of the self-scans. Obese women waddled in droves down the housewares aisles, fat rolls visible through thin stretch pants purchased on previous outings.

Every time I set foot in that store I felt a little bit stupider, a little bit less human. Every time I wandered the aisles, slack-jawed and confused, I left feeling disoriented, muddled, and taken advantage of. This time was to be no different, more than likely. I found my way to the luggage aisle and stared in disbelief at their selection. Two kinds of suitcase stared back at me- black and ugly, and ugly and black. One was already falling apart on the shelf. I already owned an ill-made ugly black suitcase, bought at the same lousy store two lousy years ago. I needed an extra one for myself for the trip, and my 8-year old needed a nice kid-sized one. Swiveling my head a bit to the side, I perused the selection of children's luggage. We had a choice of Dora the Explorer and Bratz. That's it. Kid #1 is to old for Dora, and no child of mine will ever be in possession of anything to do with spoiled preteen Valley girls, especially spelled wrong. Sure, there was some obnoxious, bright-colored boy's choice, Spiderman or some such rot, but it was just plain ugly.

A sudden flash of anger swept over me. Who were they to dictate to me that my kid was forced to choose between the lesser of two mindless evils? Who were they to foist one more shapeless and colorless suitcase on my household? I looked around at the other people shopping- every one was buying cartloads of things, things that they may or may not need, things that looked the exact same as the things everyone in every other state was also buying. I remembered vividly Madeline L'Engle's characterization of IT, the force that controlled and modulated the entire population of the city and beyond. Here I was, being controlled by a huge nameless faceless corporation that is so interested in character licensing that a kid can't even get a solid color suitcase.

Trite? Sure. But I walked out of that store and went somewhere purchased a bright red, leather-trimmed suitcase with nice detailing and excellent craftsmanship. Kid #1 got a brilliant lime-green rolling suitcase with matching tags, and they have served her well in the past year.

And then I started to learn about the company that is Wal-Mart. I learned about their numerous abuses of employees, their shameless corporate tactics, their utter disregard for the conditions of the third-world laborers that make their garbage, their ill-treatment of a customer that they hurt... the list goes on for pages.

So we stopped shopping there. It was hard at first, the convenience of everything I 'needed' in one place had become so sweet that I almost went through withdrawals for a few weeks. But after a while I noticed that I wasn't so grumpy when I came home from shopping. I noticed less 'things' cluttered my shelves and littered my house, and I just felt better. No longer was my pitiful little budget supporting a giant corporation. I know, I know, my money stills goes to other major corporations (Meijer, Target) but we are weaning ourselves off little by little.

Sometimes it was almost fun to find other places to shop at, planning out a path that would take me by Jo-Ann fabrics and Meijer in the same day.

But then we moved back to Cadillac. There's nothing here to speak of, now that Wal-Mart has taken over. The old Ace hardware, with their 'helpful hardware guys' and rows of well organized nuts and washers- they closed up and moved on years ago. The little fabric shop went out, then Snyder's shoes, then the local mom and pops that sold this and that. We do most of our shopping now at the local Meijer, which, although still a large corporation, is a Michigan-based company with somewhat better employee standards. They also support local farmers, something Wal-Mart does not do. Maybe that explains their outstanding produce selection and quality. So I feel a bit better about spending what little I have in Meijer. But now I am not within a 20 minute drive of Trader Joe's, Hobby Depot, and Target. We order off the internet more than ever, and eat from the local farmer's market when it's in season.

Money is not quite as free-flowing this year as it was last. We struggle now to make ends meet, once again. When I had the need of some extra clothing yesterday, I somehow found myself in Wal-Mart, scrounging the $9.00 clearance racks and the so-called 'career wear' section. I'm no fashion maven, but the styles hanging stiffly off the racks depressed me. I threw some clothes in a cart and went to try them on in the tiny, dingy little cattle stalls that pass for fitting rooms. The first outfit- great on the rack- was horribly cut and made me look like a piece of furniture. Of course, with my figure, this could happen anywhere.

Five- six- seven articles of clothing wound up back on the hangers, rejected. Poorly cut, poorly made, scratchy material, plunging necklines. I realized then, what the sinking feeling was in the pit of my stomach- it was defeat. "Ha!" crowed the Big Box store, "You think you can get away with boycotting ME? Have I got news for you!! I will systematically undercut every other business in this country until you have no other recourse than to shop from me!! Bwahahahaha!"

Ok, so I didn't actually have a conversation with Wal-Mart. I walked out, forever, hopefully, and got into my car and drove to a store that carries overruns and closeouts. I spent my paltry $20 on a well-made shirt from last year's design line and left happy, with most of my dignity intact.

But they almost got me. Not this time, guys.