eastcoastbychoice.ca

Photo credit: Latente from Flickr

So, I’ve been piled under blankets and drinking plenty of fluids for days now. In the midst of the H1N1 scare season, formerly known as the flu season, I have to admit to wondering about if/when I should go see a doctor. The NS government has an Influenza Decision Chart that I found actually pretty helpful/comforting. And then there’s this H1N1 Home Management sheet to help you help a loved one. Or, if you’re a woman, help yourself because let’s face it: there’s a low percentage of male nurses out there for a reason.

Being sick and not being able to do much of anything, I’ve had a lot of time to think. With what’s supposed to be a pandemic AND the holiday season upon us, here’s a shopper’s guide for getting through your illness with comfort:

1. (a) A good blanket. When I Googled “warmest blanket in the world” I came up with slanket. I have no idea what the difference between that and a snuggie is but apparently the slanket is the “original blanket with sleeves.” Yeah, it’s kind of ugly and ridiculous. But, really, you’re not exactly looking your prime when you’re nose is a faucet of snot. Plus, when you’re done with it the brown one could possibly double as a Halloween costume. Either Jedi master or Friar Tuck.

1. (b) If you’ve got a standard blanket, the next best thing to a slanket is a warm sweater. Personally, I’ve been wearing a waterfall cardigan that I brought back from the summer trip to Ireland. It’s a wool sweater made by Ireland’s Eye called a tassle wrap but very much in the style of the waterfall cardigans that are en vogue this season. Easy to throw on and off between bouts of fevers and chills.

2. A big mug. Pre-made or go the extra mile and create one from Claytime Pottery Painting.

3. Warm beverages. Put together a basket from a local shop like The Tea Brewery. Or get together all the ingredients for a hot toddy.

4. IOUs. Maybe these seem lame to the giver of this gift, but not so to the sick person piled beneath blankets desperate for a cup of tea but not willing to leave the warmth. (Hmm…the portability of slankets seems more and more appealing.) Being able to redeem an IOU for a cup of tea, meal, hug, massage, etc. is a great gift for the sick loved one in your life. The catch is, these have to be redeemed without attitude.

So, there you have it. A few ideas for the holidays while thinking of the welfare of your loved ones during this germ-y time of year.

I’m sick. But I found something on the internet to distract you with get you in the mood for the holiday season. What’s better than opening presents on Christmas day? Watching a dachshund open his Christmas stocking.

Photo credit: Wry&Ginger from Flickr

Wrapping up the “Shopping “Home for the Holidays”” series this week is local Etsy artist Wry & Ginger. As her site says, she makes “seriously funny handmade cards in original designs.” Shortly after dog-sitting Tofu one weekend a few months back, she came out with a new line of cards called “Doxie Love is Peculiar.”

Tofu was so thrilled that he wanted to personally interview Cheryl. So, head on over to the dog blog for the full interview and, while you’re there, enter to win a set of these cards. Contest closes November 27. Full details at Who’s Your Dachshund?

Thanks again to everyone who posted on the site this week. If you missed any, check them out:

Green Christmas by Charlene Boyce

The Bay Hammock Company by Anne Chisholm

Shopping locally: we’re all in the same boat by Heather Rankin

Love, Me Boutique by Chara Kingston

[Here's a treasured local gem known as Love, Me Boutique. If you haven't yet discovered this shop, mosey on down to where you'll find scads of unique gift items made right here in Canada.]

By Chara Kingston

One of my earliest Christmas shopping memories took place in my elementary school. I think I may have been about eight – old enough to feel the power and independence in making gift choices but young enough to believe that magic surrounded any holiday activity.

Photo from Love, Me Boutique's Facebook Fan Page

And magic did surround the event known as the Christmas Shopping Room.

The lead up to this shopping event began with the take-home notice for parents explaining that class by class, children would be led down to an assembly room where manufacturers and company representatives would have product for sale. I don’t remember my mother’s reaction to the notice, but think it very well could have involved some eyebrow lifting. And I don’t remember what I may have said to her in order to acquire shopping funds, but am equally certain it involved a very dramatic plea about being grown up and needing to complete this task myself. In the end shopping funds were allotted alongside a brief but serious discussion on “budgeting”. But of course, the minute I had the money in my hot little hands, my imagination went wild with visions of what could possibly be inside the Christmas Shopping Room.

And so the day came. I was giddy with anticipation. As I was guided toward this magical assembly room by carols being pumped through the loud speakers, I clutched my coin purse and went through my list: Mom, Dad, and my brothers RJ and Michael. Maybe there would be a little extra and I could justify a cute barrette?? With due diligence, I walked the whole room before making a purchase. “I can always go back”, I thought. I may have done the circuit twice. And then I panicked. The teacher had called out the 15 minute warning and I had purchased nothing. “Just pick something…anything” my little brain was yelling. My eyes surveyed the trinkets and knickknacks of mass produced proportions and my heart sank. It wasn’t right. I didn’t want to just pick up something. I wanted perfect things. I wanted special things.

In the end I only made one purchase that day. It was a handmade jewel-coloured dyed silk framed picture which read “MOM”. It was more than I had budgeted for my mother but I thought it was so pretty.

Looking back on that experience and recollecting that little girl’s dismayed heart at seeing rows upon rows of sad mass produced “stuff”, it is no wonder to me that I ended up winding and curving down a road which would lead me to opening a shop which sells only Canadian handmade goods. In planning for the opening of Love, Me Boutique, I knew my shop had to be the kind of store that I wanted then and still want today – a fun and memorable experience filled with unique, one-of-a-kind, handmade products full of colour and texture.

Love, Me Boutique opened in October of 2007. I have really only experienced two full Holiday seasons here at the shop. Last year I really felt a shift in consumer needs and wants. I had customers who declared that they were only buying from local stores and/or only buying handmade or Canadian produced. The things I wanted as a child – gifts that were perfect and special – seemed to be the wants of many of my customers. And the fact that my shop might have had a hand in meeting those expectations makes me, and my little eight year old self, smile.

Love Me Boutique is a wee shop in Halifax, Nova Scotia dedicated to Canadian handmade for wearing, living and giving. Follow on Twitter @LoveMeBoutique.

[Next up in the shopping "home for the holidays" guest posts is a woman who's returned home after several years abroad. She gives her unique perspective on opening up shop in Halifax and the importance of the local market in staying afloat.]

By Heather Rankin

Last week I caught a portion of a radio interview between David Suzuki and Mohamed Waheed, Vice President of the Maldives. Waheed was describing plans for making his country the first to be carbon-neutral in the next 10 years. Toward the end of the interview Suzuki remarked on the irony of poor countries (like Maldives) – the least to blame for the world’s ecological problems – contributing the most toward addressing these problems. Waheed’s response was (paraphrased): “we are all on the same planet. We are all in the same boat. It doesn’t matter who put the holes in the boat. What matters is that we work together to patch the holes so that we do not sink.”

Photo credit: Hadassah28 from Flickr

While Waheed was referring specifically to environmental issues, his statement had many applications for me. Sometimes a problem requires a combined effort to solve, regardless of who’s at fault.

When I moved to Halifax just under a year ago to start my own business I noticed a change in the city. Though it still felt small, it seemed to have lost some of it’s neighbourhood charm. Businesses seemed bigger, more generic, and less personal. There were markedly less neighbourhood “spots”; fewer small, locally-owned businesses, and an increased number of chains and high-end bars and restaurants. Streets like Barrington Street, once a thriving strip of independently-owned restaurants, bars and shops, was now largely barren. Where were the cheap and cheerful cafés, affordable boutique shops, neighbourhood pubs?

Other noticeable changes, thankfully, were more encouraging. A vibrant local food and wine community was buzzing. A few miles away people were producing wine that rivalled some of the best in the world, others were making wonderful cheeses, or smoking and brining meats. There was a whole legion of local bakers, sustainable farmers and artisans making incredible products. People were getting excited about the ‘local movement’. Consumers were interested in the personal experience, they wanted to know who they were buying from, where the product was coming from and were prepared to pay for experience.

As I began to flesh out the details of my business, I quickly discarded the idea of having to “import” the best of everything. Having lived abroad for about a decade I had initially felt that Halifax needed a little bit of Europe: the best wines from France, the finest cheeses from Spain, charcuterie from Italy, etc. But now I knew that many of these products were available right here, or pretty close by. I started speaking to local producers and merchants, and saw their passion and energy for what they do. I got to know the faces and first names of people I’d be getting my product from. To my delight they knew their craft inside and out and completely stood behind their products – it would be a refreshing and sensible way to do business.

It was obvious to me how we could equally benefit from supporting one another: what was good for them, was also good for me. And good for Halifax, too, since anytime a customer visited us (i.e local business owners) the money would, in turn, go back into the community. A win for everyone.

To me, it is simple. Small, locally-owned, neighbourhood businesses are the lifeblood of a city. Local business people, and their supporters, take a particular interest and pride in their community in a way that big, faceless businesses can’t. Halifax needs an even stronger network of local, inter-dependent producers, suppliers and merchants (and a healthy customer base to support them). These are not new revelations, and I’m no authority on the subject. But this is just what I see. I hope that in becoming a small business owner in Halifax I will be doing a small part in contributing toward a vibrant, sustainable future for the city, and at the same time, patching a hole or two in our boat.

Heather Rankin is a luddite girl trapped in a technocratic world. Loves wine, food and music. Recently returned to her homeland after 10 years abroad. Follow her on Twitter @curlyluddite.

[This next guest runs a lovely business with her husband in the beautiful Peggy's Cove Area. If you've ever experienced the luxury of a hammock and wondered how you can get your hands on one, you'll be pleased to know you can find a local shop that carries them. A unique gift idea for those who are outdoorsy in a loungey sort of way.]

By Anne Chisholm

So here we were, my husband Arch and I, retired and living near our families in Nova Scotia after 45 years of living and working in Ontario. We played golf and bridge, but not all the time. We enjoyed our time with our families, but they had to work for a living. We needed something to do. We were a bit at sixes and sevens when we stumbled upon the assets of a defunct hammock maker that once operated in the Head of St. Margaret’s Bay. We contacted the owners and after several discussions purchased 6 antique rope making machines, some hand-made hammock weaving looms, & shuttles and a hammock tying table along with the bits and pieces that were required to make hammocks and hammock swings. Most importantly, we were able to hire their Master Hammock Maker, Lynn Sallans, a skilled and creative artisan who can create whatever we (or you) can dream.

Photo credit: Virginia Zuluaga from Flickr

That first summer we set up our hammock making facility in a building at the old military base in Mill Cove NS and sold the hammocks we made from a roadside stand in Hubbards NS. Then we started looking for a permanent home for our business, which we found on the Peggy’s Cove Road, in Seabright NS.

As we started to renovate the building and open our hammock making business in Seabright we were sure of only one thing – we wanted to establish a business that would be fun to operate and a fun spot for customers to visit and shop. As we are making and selling hammocks this wasn’t too hard to do. The first summer in Seabright we felt our way along. We hung hammocks out among the trees on the lawn, added a couple of picnic tables for customers to use and, on nice days, Lynn worked outside, weaving hammocks and hammock swings. People loved dropping in, enjoying a picnic; swinging in the hammocks and watching Lynn weave the hammocks. But, their favourite thing was watching our antique rope-making machines at work.

The challenge was to set our shop up so visitors could see and follow the complete hammock making process from making the rope to finishing and hanging the hammock. Then we learned of The Atlantic ÉconoMusée Network. This is a network of shops that make their products using traditional handcrafting methods. These shops, which are self supporting businesses, are set up as working museums where visitors can learn the history of the craft and watch the products being made. We applied to join, were accepted, and officially opened as a rope and hammock making ÉconoMusée in June 2008.

So, five years later, here we are, busy and having fun. When you drop, in Lynn or Arch act as you tour guide, showing you around the shop and demonstrating how the rope and hammocks are made. Hammocks and hammock swings are set up for you to test drive. The picnic area remains so bring along a snack lunch to enjoy outside when you come

We are open 7 days a week 9am to 6 pm in June, July , August, and September, 11 am to 4 pm Wednesday to Sunday in October, November, December, March, April and May and by appointment or by chance in January and February.

@BayHammocks is located in the Peggy’s Cove area of Nova Scotia.  They handcraft hammocks and shade sails for customers around the world.

[Welcome to another edition of East Coast Guest Posts. Now that Hallowe'en has come and gone, we all know what's on most consumer minds: Christmas. This week, we'll be hearing from guests about shopping "home for the holidays." First up: a word from the Ecology Action Centre.]

By Charlene Boyce

Working at an environmental non-profit organization has several implications for the holiday season. One is that every year I’m challenged to be creatively ‘non-consumer’ with my gift-giving…crafting, re-gifting, baking and researching what folks actually need has become SOP.

But nothing is ever easy. It’s not like I live in a commune of like-minded individuals. I have family who do not speak ‘green’, and don’t understand a used, marked-up book as a sign of love. I also have a nine-year-old daughter, who is perfectly balanced between ‘planet-lover’ and ‘marketer’s-brain-washed-sidekick’. The child devours the Sears Wish Book just as I did at her age, and yet accepts most of the Santa-legend amendments I offer, such as “Santa’s elves are only using recycled materials this year”, and “Santa won’t bring you new toys that he knows you won’t love…so if you don’t get them, it’s because Santa knows you don’t really need them.” Santa’s omniscience is unchallenged as yet…thanks be to the gods of fiscal prudence.

Gold bow

This year my newest green tip (because I am a notorious impulse buyer) is to make a list of stores I want to support and shop at for Christmas and to avoid the others. Despite Wal-Mart’s tremendous green initiatives recently, they aren’t on my short list, because Wal-Mart causes me to suffer ‘shopper’s ADHD’: “I just need thi—oh, there’s that shirt Nancy wan—oh, I need more laundry so…is that a SlapChop?!…oooh, shiny! ”

You get the idea.

I’m looking at boutiques like Woozles and P’lovers, small stores that support local products like Rum Runners, co-op stores like MEC and the Farmer’s Market. If I can make it to Christmas without going in a mall, so much the better for my wallet and spirit. I’m also being a dragon about sticking to my list this year. No buying stuff just because so-and-so, who I had no intention of buying for, might like it.

First run-through the list, though, is to figure out who would love or use something homemade. I’ve started knitting, but the baking won’t happen till there’s snow down to inspire me. Every year I make Christmas bread for several people. My daughter helps me prepare it, from an old family recipe I got from her dad’s mom. This year it will feature red fife wheat, our local Nova Scotia variety. I may add some blueberry preserves (my roommate is the preserves queen, I’m counting on her for guidance.)

Other things working at an ENGO means at Christmas? One, I buy an organic Christmas tree (I work for the Ecology Action Centre, and, full disclosure, we sell them annually); I don’t use regular gift wrap (except sometimes for the child’s gifts, due to the infernal culture machine dictating that for Santa); I do give those who will appreciate it gift memberships or charity donations in their name; and (something most will relate to) I never have enough money to buy everything I want to at Christmas. Non-profit salary means that all my planet-saving measures must also be cost-saving measures…so believe me when I say, if I can afford a green, sustainable Christmas, anyone can!

Charlene Boyce is the Development and Outreach Coordinator for Ecology Action Centre. She’d love to help you find great sustainable gifts for the eco-peeps on your list… like gift memberships or eco-undies!

Has anyone else been having trouble sleeping lately? I don’t know if it’s the weather, the time change or what but I feel like I’ve been on auto-pilot this past week due to lack of z’s. As a result, random thoughts have come to into my head. Sort of like the following:

AliasGrace: I think I’d like to be a philanthropist for a living.

Me: …

AliasGrace: What?

Me: What exactly do you think that entails?

AliasGrace: It’s kind of like a socialite except instead of spending money on yourself you spend it on other people. For charity.

Me: Where do you propose to get all this disposable income from?

AliasGrace: *shrugs*

Me: OK, then. You go on daydreaming while I get back to work. I do have bills to pay and a dog to feed.

AliasGrace: Yeah, you go ahead. I guess you’re just the socialite between us.

Me: ..!

Photo credit: ~Ilse from Flickr

I realize I talk and write and live and breath Twitter. For anyone who’s reading this but not (yet) using the social media platform, I’ve written another guest post at Geek Girl Camp.

It’s pretty much a starter’s guide to owning and operating a Twitter account. So if you’re interested in getting started or if you’ve started but still need the 411, check out my post: Twitter 101.

Hope you find it helpful.

I’m not the kind of person who usually “wins” anything, particularly out of the blue. I don’t buy lottery tickets or go in on the 50/50 draws at work. So, I don’t really expect random earnings either.

Well, about a month ago I received an e-mail saying I’d been selected to receive a free TASSIMO coffee machine.

Being a sceptic, the first thing I did was search Google for TASSIMO scams.

Hey, for all I knew, it could have been a cleverly disguised Nigerian 419 scam in which I shipped my personal supply of coffee and tea with the guarantee that I’d be swimming in a lifetime supply of caffeine at a later date.

Photo credit: DeaPeaJay from Flickr

In any case, after I was sufficiently satisfied that it wasn’t a scam I gave out my mailing address. About a week later, a huge package arrived at the door. Inside, was not only the coffee machine but a wide range of products from decaf coffee to chai latte to espresso and Starbucks brand coffee.

To be honest, my first impression was that it was a gimmick. The coffee, tea and milk (for lattes and cappuccinos) come in containers called T DISCs. Each T DISC has a bar code that’s read by the machine to pour the “perfect cup.” You simply fill the water filtration container, insert the disc and press a button. Within seconds, there’s a cup of hot beverage waiting to be enjoyed.

It’s almost right out of Star Trek.

Say, “Tea, Earl Grey, Hot.”

And it magically appears.

Almost.

The quality of the beverages ranges in quality, possibly due to personal tastes. For instance, I find the latte milk far too sweet for my liking but the option to add hot water simply made the beverage taste, well, watered down. On the other hand, Starbucks coffee is exactly what I’d get if I ordered a black coffee from Starbucks. The cappuccinos are probably the most impressive of the bunch, particularly if you reverse the order of coffee and milk to create a macchiato (in a clear glass is best so you can see the layers).

The appeal of TASSIMO is in the ease of use. There’s really no mess of grinds involved and cleanup is pretty much as easy as disposing of the T DISC. Our kitchen already includes a coffee & espresso machine, an electric percolator and a French press. Clearly, the company knew what they were doing when they sent this package. Originally, I thought we’d try it out for a little bit and then I’d bring it to work. One month later and it’s still fairly well-used in our house, particularly by Cokebaby who has to work a lot of bizarre shifts.

My one complaint is the packaging. There’s a lot of it and not only does that create waste but it also weighs on my eco-conscience. The T DISCs are plastic and I believe non-recyclable. These, in turn, come packaged in boxes that are encased in more plastic. Does the convenience outweigh the garbage created? I don’t know. Probably not. It’s definitely the one thing I’d ask them to change about the otherwise great system.

I still drink my fair trade coffee and tea from Just Us! but the simplicity of brewing one cup versus one pot certainly has its appeal. For people who are constantly on the go or working in an office without the benefit of a large kitchen and appliances, I can see the real benefit in time and clean-up. It’s certainly not the haute coffee that can be compared to the likes of Kopi Luwak. But I’ve always questioned the validity of drinking something that’s come out of a civet’s rear end.

P.S. For the record: I’m sorry purveyors of Kopi Luwak coffee but, if you’re reading this and thinking of getting in touch to maybe sway my thoughts on the matter by sending freebies, I’m seriously not interested in trying it. Seriously.