Zero waste period – You can control your body much more than you think –

Among reusable alternatives for disposable feminine hygiene products, menstrual cups generally seem to be the most popular. But I prefer reusable cloth pads because I feel uncomfortable inserting a product into my body. Sure, washing thick blood-soaked pads is really a pain in the neck, but if you are able to avoid spotting in pads…?

A Japanese Peel Art artist, Shunko Saida, advocates the idea of Haikei 排経, which is a body technique to control menstrual blood. In plain words, our bodies can stop and let go of menstrual blood at will with vaginal muscle training. We can keep blood inside by tightening the exits when we don’t want it to flow out, and when we want to let it out, for example, when we are in a bathroom, we can open the gates.

Chizuru Misuna, a professor of epidemiology, also says in her books that all Japanese women in old times could do this because at that time underwear for women were skirt-like garments that had no crotch. They wore T-shaped loincloths while on their period but they had to be very careful to avoid leaking.
Misuna’s book that I read was totally a book of threats, saying that women who refuse their biological femininity (in other words, women who don’t give birth) will end up being Onibabas (Onibaba is an old Japanese female monster who eats humans). I think this denies diversity among the lives of women so I don’t agree with this opinion, but I do agree with her view that women should be more conscious about the potential of their bodies.

I myself am almost successful in this practice. It is not difficult in an inactive routine day. I just have to be mindful of that “I AM on my period”. To be more practical, when you stand up from a chair, tighten the muscles, and relax completely in a bathroom.
(On an active day, it is another thing. It was a total disaster the day I experienced a snowshoe activity for the first time in my life.)

By doing this, I manage to use only a pad for a day.

Moreover my “pads” are not in conventional disposable pad-like shapes. I use folded thin organic cotton cloths as pads. Their original shapes are simply square or rectangle, and this offers great flexibility. If I happen to spot on a pad a little, I can fold the cloth another way by tucking the spotted part in, and I can feel comfortable again after that.
And from the thin open weaved cloth, blood comes off easily after it is soaked in cold water for a while. It is better to add sodium sesquicarbonate, that dissolves the protein in the blood well. After that, just washing it in a washing machine with cold water is enough.

To prevent the pad from moving around, I wear period underwear with double crotch into which the wings of conventional disposable pads can be inserted. I just tuck both ends of my folded rectangle pad in.

You can by the cloth, Sunafu 素直布 here.

What’s a “spork”?

10th January, 2017

I titled my main blog written in Japanese “Itsumo Kaban ni Spork wo いつもかばんにスポークを”.

I’ve not found a good English translation for it yet. Anyway, it means “Always bring reusable cutlery like a spork with you”.

So! What’s a spork?

A spork is spoon & fork, that is, a hybrid form of cutlery taking the form of a spoon-like shallow scoop with fork tines.You can see one at shops that sell camping equipment. I bought mine by mail-order from Life Without Plastic, because I couldn’t find a foldable one in my area.

(I badly wanted a foldable one because the one Lauren Singer has looks so cute).

Now, I always throw it into my bag when I go out. However, I have to admit that, as a Japanese person, chopsticks are more practical for my everyday life…Sadly sometimes a spork alone is totally useless (for instance, at a Soba restaurant).

So I now also carry chopsticks!

I love Panda – to-go pizza without trash –

13th February, 2017

Sometimes I just want to enjoy a lazy holiday afternoon sitting on my settee and eating delivery pizza. However, a pizza delivery is inevitably accompanied by big cardboard boxes and tiny plastic pouches containing spices & seasoning oil. This is a great problem. Plastics can at least be recycled if I put in a lot of time and effort to wash them, but as the box in which the pizza comes soaks up the oil and can be no longer recycled, I have to throw it away as burnable waste. As the boxes are quite big, it is very frustrating.

Fortunately, this pizza problem was solved completely last year when a wonderful pizza place opened in my neighborhood. The name of the pizza restaurant is Agropizzeria da Panda.

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The first time I visited the restaurant, I was empty-handed, namely, without any to-go containers. But the pizzas made of organic vegetables from Panda Farm looked so good that I couldn’t help but try them, even if I had to accept some disposable container waste.

I saw the price list on the wall, where it was written, “if you don’t need a box, we give a discount of 30 yen”. Oh, that’s nice.

I had to take all the cardboard boxes and the big plastic bag to carry them home as I expected. But after that, I use the boxes and the bag over and over again, by putting large plates in them so that the boxes don’t soak up the oil.

 

Though the pizzeria is always busy recently (because their pizza is really good, not to be compared with ordinary pizza chain stores), they let me bring my own containers for oiled olives and pickles. I really appreciate it.

Actually, it is a bit of a pain that I have to go out to get the pizza, but it’s no problem because my boyfriend is happy to pick it up. It seems to be a blissful time for him to have a glass of beer while watching the tortoise kept in the pizzeria until the pizza is done. That’s why he fetches the pizza willingly.

Residual heat cooking: Pot in a “skirt” (Hakasenabe はかせ鍋)

3rd April, 2017

Residual heat cooking is a cooking method to cook foods with residual heat after the foods have been removed from the heat source, by covering the pot or using a special pot for the purpose.

The best advantage of this method is the amount of greenhouse gas emissions that can be reduced and household gas charges that can be saved because the time that a pot spends on the gas is shorter. And, since heating for a long time at high temperature is avoided, nutrients remain in foods undestroyed and this helps to improve health.

I love this method because, for one reason, I don’t need to consider the amount of evaporating water, which means I don’t have to bother to taste. How much salt I should add is given according to the amount of water. So, if you put the soup in 200ml water, you just add 2g salt mechanically. That’s all. Your soup is certainly good. I have to admit that I don’t have a keen sense of taste, so this is great for me.

And, for another reason, I can remove the pot from the gas sooner once it is boiled, after that, I can settle down for other dishes without caring about what’s inside the pot.

I bought a pot invented by Dr. Kobayashi, who is a physicist, for residual heat cooking, about 10 years ago. It was quite expensive for me at that time, but I got a good enough return on my investment because this pot has been very helpful for my everyday cooking.

 

 

The structure is simple. The pot has a detachable covering around the body ( Dr. Kobayashi calls this covering “a skirt”). Installing this pot with the covering on a flat space makes room around the pot body, where heated air stays, and keeps the pot hot.

 

I have a space for installation in my cupboard.

When I prepare meals, I make a dish with this pot first, place it on the heat retention space, then I proceed with other work.

It might not be suitable for making meals in hurry, because there is a little bit longer waiting time until the food is cooked well-done enough. However, I’ m using it almost every day conveniently, devising the cooking order.

Residual heat cooking: Wadded pot cozy (Nabeboushi なべ帽子)

4th April, 2017

I got really into residual heat cooking with “Hakasenanbe はかせ鍋 (a
pot with a covering to keep heat)” , and I came to wish that I could do all
the dishes with that.

However, I’ve got only the one.

I thought about purchasing another size of Hakasenanbe, but that is too
pricy….

Actually, there is a tip for this. When the inside of the pot is hot enough
… … push it into your bed!
… Yes, I know. It is not beautiful.
Moreover, our bed is a Japanese Futon on Tatami, and I always have to worry
that my boyfriend might kick the pot over without noticing it.

It does not cost money and the heat retaining ability is quite high (I’m
doing a thermal insulation experiment with Kleen Kanteen, this futon method
keeps the highest score among other ways for now), but it is too inelegant,
I prefer not to resort to that.

In time, I found a book below in the library.

 

魔法の鍋帽子

• 作者: 婦人之友社編集部
• 出版社/メーカー: 婦人之友社
• 発売日: 2012/03/05
• メディア: 単行本
• 購入: 1人 クリック: 2回
• この商品を含むブログを見る

As a recipe book, this is not for me because  there are broth cubes which
are used frequently as cooking ingredients that I don’t want, but I got
this book as a textbook to learn how to make a “Nabeboushi 鍋帽子
(Wadded pot cozy)” with which you can use a plain pot as a residual heat
cooking pot.

At first, I felt that I should not have made this because it doesn’t look
cool, and is too big ( a 2L pot can be put in it). Where should I put this
when I don’t use it ???

If there is anyone who is inclined for making one, I strongly recommend
that you make it with good chic fabric that goes well with your kitchen,
and you should plan where to put it in advance.

At first, I’ve been hiding it in an Oshiire (a built-in Japanese closet),
and took it out each time I used it, but it was very frustrating, so
eventually I decided to put it on the top of the cupboard shelf in my
kitchen, above my eyes.

On this place, normally it doesn’t come into my sight so I will not be
irritated at all (for the same reason the huge anodized aluminum pot is
also on top of the shelf) and when I need it, I can immediately put it on
the table etc..

Of course the heat retention function is alright, this Nabeboushi is very
active in every day’s cooking.

Share Seeds

26th March, 2017

I’m planning to grow Hechima (loofahs) this summer. I used to buy seeds through mail order from Noguchi Seeds Labo, which sells only non-filial 1 hybrid seeds. But now, I’m prohibiting myself from ordering things through mail order for a while, and the labo is deep in the mountains in Saitama prefecture. It is not practical to go there just to get a few seeds.

Fortunately, I found a seeds sharing system, “Tane (seeds) Box“. A booth like the picture above is installed at Aoyama Farmer’s Market, which is held in front of the UN university every week.

You can see the variety of seeds they offer on the link above, and some shops located in Fujisawa, Kamakura, Hachioji, and Setagaya have a “Tane Box” (refer to the right side column on the link).

To get the seeds, you choose the seeds you want, take some (the amount you need), and write a Thank You card. That’s it.
If you don’t have any seeds, you can just make an offer for now, it is no problem. I’m going to give back seeds if my chillies go well this year.

Here are the Hechima seeds I got, not F1 hybrid, packageless !!About the farmer’s market, it was not as fruitful as I had expected from the viewpoint of seeking packageless vegetables. Almost all the produce is wrapped in plastic so elaborately that you can’t take only the vegetable and return the wrapper.

 

This is my “placard”

26^th January, 2017

I am trying to be as green as possible, but I don’t talk about it with
others actively, except with my eco-conscious boyfriend, for fear of being
misunderstood that I’m preaching or judging them.

… but I still want to make a stand!

So I made a “placard”. As I needed a spare pouch for my spork, I made one with
an embroidered banner on it.

When I use my spork at work, I always put this pouch next to me, so I hope
it catches my colleagues eyes when they pass by. It is like a silent
demonstration.

When I was making it, Tom asked, “What are you doing, Naoko?”
I answered “I’m embroidering one of my principles of life.”
Then he said, “Oh, I see. That is…” I AM NOT ABE”, right? ”

… That is totally NOT cute for a pouch at all…

Food wrap: Abeego

31st Dec., 2015

I haven’t used polyethylene food wrap since I left my parents’ home and
started to live alone because I haven’t been able to afford it. I prefer to
spend my money on fancy clothes, concert tickets, and eating out with
friends!

So I would put leftovers in old-Pyrex glass containers, which I had
collected.

Now I live with my partner, Tom (short for Tomoyuki), and he tends to use
conventional wrap for putting leftovers into a cereal bowl or something.
And, unfortunately, he is the chef in our household.

Even though I’ve asked him thousands of times not to use poly wrap and
advised him to cover the food with another plate or something instead, the
situation has remained the same. I admit, covering a bowl with a dish is
unstable, and takes up more room in the fridge. However, to avoid  the
feeling of guilt at throwing away the used wrap, I decided to try the flat
sheets from Abeego  🙂

These are cloths coated with beeswax, which are used for food preservation.
This time I bought a variety set of 3 sheets of different sizes. I like
them very much, and (it seems) Tom has accepted them because he uses them
willingly, so it may be a success. As is the nature of beeswax, they are a
bit sticky, but not enough to bother me.

The great thing is that, with proper care, they will last for over a year.

As far as I can see on the internet, there aren’t any stockists in Japan at
the moment so I bought them while buying other things at Life Without
Plastic, but if I buy them from the Abeego site directly, the international
shipping fee is 15 USD.

They look far better than disposable poly wrap. I love them!

It is impossible to use them in a microwave oven, of course. But I make it
a rule never to use a microwave, so I am so satisfied with this purchase.