How To Start A Minimalist Lifestyle

June 10, 2019August 15, 2020 / Yen-Van Tran / Leave a comment

06.10.2019

0600

I’ve been asked this question before,

“How do I start a minimalist lifestyle?”

Truth be told, you start small, start with baby steps. You have to look at this challenge as the fact that you’ve accumulated your items over a period of time, technically, your entire life. Don’t look at decluttering your home all at once as a whole, that’s too overwhelming and no one needs that.

When I initially started minimizing my possessions, I envisioned a goal for myself, that applied to each area of what I wanted to tackle. The vision didn’t include everything that I would end up decluttering, but there was a feeling of peace and tranquility I was seeking. I wanted to see more space between my possessions, clean surfaces, simplistic routines and a more uniform look with my wardrobe. I started out by going from room to room, and I filtered through items that I knew I did not use anymore, or would not use in the future; items that I kept “just in case I need it”. Getting rid of definite YES items was easy, but then I would make a pile of MAYBE items. I always gave myself a few days, and would then return to the MAYBE pile of items, and see how I felt. Almost every time, I returned to the MAYBE pile, I never kept the items. The initial shock and emotional attachment I had when contemplating about getting rid of a possession, was a feeling I had to recognize and get used to.

I started with my bedroom because it was the easiest room to declutter. It’s a lot easier to declutter your personal items versus communal areas. The biggest area to tackle in the bedroom, was my closet, specifically my wardrobe. I created three piles. One pile was for items that I frequently wore, one pile was for items I knew I did not wear at all or that I had not worn in a very long time, and the last pile was the maybe pile. If I was unsure about any items that I wanted to keep, I would hide them from my view. What I mean by that, is I would hide in the closet; literally, a closet. The reason why I did this was because I wanted to make sure that I didn’t need the possession emotionally or physically. Most of the time when I hid my items, I really didn’t need them any longer. I was still emotionally attached to the possession, and that’s what my hesitation was. Hiding items out of view, out of sight is an emotional training method that I use to really test my need for the object. I didn’t end up hiding too many objects.

Also, for my wardrobe, I adopted a capsule wardrobe. A capsule wardrobe is a collection of clothing for a season. There are many different types of capsule wardrobes, and it really boils down to your own preference and climate. Some people have seasonal capsule wardrobes, in which they have a set wardrobe for each changing season. Some people will combine seasons so that they may have a set of clothes for the colder seasons and then one for the warmer seasons. Some have year round capsule wardrobes, which they don’t change out their clothes at all. The set number of garments they have, they will use for the entire year. I have a year round capsule wardrobe. My capsule wardrobe also sticks to a specific color palette, so when I do buy a new piece item, I can only choose from that palette. It actually makes shopping easier, since I only look for certain colors and certain styles. When I started my capsule wardrobe, I started with 30 items, but it’s now become a 40 item capsule wardrobe. I’m more comfortable with 40 items, since life has changed a bit.

For my bathroom, I evaluated my morning and nighttime routine and really set a goal of what I wanted out of those routines. Honestly, I just wanted a simple routine. I didn’t want to constantly buy products and spend my money on questionable personal care items. I didn’t want to spend a lot of time in the mornings to get ready. At night, I don’t mind as much if my routine takes a bit longer, since I’m still trying to wind down; in the morning though, I want to get out the door.

So, I used up all of the bathroom products I knew I didn’t need, or were items that were not ideal for my lifestyle. I invested in vegan makeup and replaced toxic chemicals in my bathroom, with non toxic products. I cleared off my vanity counter and reduced the items I needed to maintain a clean bathroom. The irony was that the more products I had, the more complicated my morning and evening bathroom routines were. You’d be surprised how many products you don’t really need, and how toxic those products really are to your health. By simplifying the items in my bathroom, I was re-setting my expectations and standards for myself.

I went through each room and each area, and applied the same methods. I would first evaluate why I didn’t like the space or wasn’t happy about the space, and then I would envision what I wanted to feel, see, when I entered the room. I would then evaluate each item and really ask myself, “Is this necessary? Why do I still have this?”

Eliminating items can be a difficult process, and it’s not going to be quick. It will feel like a mess when you first start, but it gets easier. And the likelihood, is that you’re going to re-evaluate your items repeatedly over time.

Marie Kondo uses her KonMarie Method in which, she will tell her clients to take all of their items out and lay them in a large pile, for each category. She created this step in the process, so the client could see everything they had accumulated. We’re good at hiding our clutter. We hide our clutter in drawers, cabinets, and inside of other items. Laying everything out in the open can feel embarrassing, even shameful. But it’s a good thing, because everyone is good at hiding their possessions.

To this day, I STILL will walk around my house and go through each drawer, cabinet, shelf, etc. to make sure I still find all my possessions necessary.

My main goal when I started my minimalist lifestyle, was simplicity. I wanted more room and less stuff. I wanted more time in my life, and less stuff to take care of. I wanted non-toxic products in my home and that took time to research and educated myself on alternative solutions. I wanted to feel like my walls were breathing and my spaces were tranquil. That was my ultimate goal. In order to get to that point, I had to break down where my routines and spaces were not bringing me that tranquility.

More time in my life, meant that I could enjoy life and not feel pressured to run errands or maintain a possession. I could go to the beach more, go on more hikes, spend more time with family and friends, or simply enjoy doing nothing… but more.

Living a minimalist lifestyle doesn’t necessarily mean to purge all of your possessions. The concept is to really only keep items that matter to you; the rest is unnecessary. Hopefully this post will help you start living a minimalist lifestyle, if you’re looking to start one. I will say that starting this lifestyle was one of the best decisions I had ever made in my life and there’s no going back to what it was before.

If you want to know more, check out this article by Rocio Espinoza, “How to Become a Minimalist and Love It“.

Also, check out these printable checklists from MintLife Blog to help the decuttering process, “How to Get Rid of Sentimental Clutter and Spend More Intentionally“.

How I Keep Long Cords Organized

January 2, 2018August 12, 2018 / Yen-Van Tran / 4 Comments

01.02.2018

0600

Materials:

Velcro straps
Cardboard

Tools:

Cables
Rope
Christmas Lights

Organizing long ropes is always a bit tricky. There are many different methods and techniques that people use in different professions. I discovered a few that help me keep different types of cords organized.

Every cable has a natural coil. When you try to fight that coil, bad things happen. The cable eventually twists on the inside, and when you needed it the most, the cable will fail.

For long extension cords:

For extension cords, I use the “Over-Under Technique” to keep my longer cords in a loop form but also to keep it from twisting was I’m wrapping it up. This method eliminates unnecessary twists in the cord and allows the cord to coil in it’s natural state (like it was wrapped from the factory). You can check out how this technique is used at Digital Photo: “Studio Safety: Coiling Cables”. The technique looks like this:

Basically, you take the cable at one, holding the cable in one hand with your thumb holding that end down. With your other hand, and your thumb facing the same direction as your other hand, bring the cable around to create a loop and let that loop sit in your holding hand.

Then create another loop but face your thumb away from the holding hand’s thumb, bring it around to create another loop, but when it reaches your holding hand, make sure your thumb is facing the opposite direction of the holding hand’s thumb. Repeat these two types of loops until you finish with the entire cable. When you coil your cables in this sequence, the cable does not twist while you coil it up.

If you need to use the cable, you can grab the end of the rope that is on the outside, throwing the coil away from your or just pulling on one end, and the rest of the cable will unravel quickly.

For shorter cables, I wrap the cable around my hand, using the space between my thumb and index finger.

With Christmas lights, I take a piece of cardboard and I cut it into an “I” shape, with small slits cut into the four inside corners of the cardboard piece. These slits are about half an inch and marked where the red lines are located in the picture. If you want to know the measurements for my cardboard holders, I included it in the image below.

Tuck the female end of the christmas lights into one of the slits. Continue wrapping the cord around the middle piece of the cardboard until the entire cord is wrapped. Then take the male end of the cardboard and tuck it into the nearest available slit.

When you need to use the Christmas lights, simply plug in the male end of the cord and unravel while decorating your tree, or just decorating inside as needed.

I also label each cord using masking tape, with that type of light it is (marked with the yellow circle) so it’s easier to identify each year when we set up the Christmas decorations. I also write the length of each cord on both the male end and female end, which is identified with the orange circle.

White Solid = White lights that don’t blink
White Blink = White blinking lights
Color Solid = Color lights that don’t blink
Color Blink = Color lights that blink

So these methods are how I keep my long cords organized and I’m sure there are more techniques as well. Hopefully these ideas will spark some new ways of how you can organize your cords.

How To Daisy Chain Your Long Ropes

December 26, 2017August 12, 2018 / Yen-Van Tran / 2 Comments

12.26.2017

0600

Storing long ropes can be a hassle, but if you know how to organize the ropes, unraveling them each time won’t seem as daunting. I like to wrap my long ropes in a daisy chain so that when I open the rope, it’s a quick process and it doesn’t get tangled.

A daisy chain is a simple method to store long ropes. It’s also known as a chain sinnet. It’s a method of shortening a rope or other cable while in use or for storage. It is formed by making a series of simple crochet-like stitches in the line. It can also reduce tangling while a rope is being washed in a washing machine. Rock climbers, concert stage workers have used this method in their professions. I’ve found that wrapping the ropes up in a daisy chain can be just as quick as unraveling it once you nail the method down.

First find the middle of the rope and tie a knot to mark the middle point. It’s easier to create a loop while making the knot to make it more distinguishable.

At the ends of the rope, tie knots to keep the rope from fraying.

Before starting the chain pattern, it’s easier to step on the two loose ends of the rope so that the chain is taught when you’re creating it. Take the end with the middle knot and loop the other end over it creating a loose loop.

Then bring the rope through the loop you just created.

Pull the new loop through the opening and bring it downwards so that you can see the hanging rope through the new loop.

Grab the rope through the new loop and bring it through, towards yourself.

Once you grab hold of the rope, bring down the chain so that the loop pattern is more taught. Once the pattern is tighter, you can bring the chain back up and repeat the process.

Once you get towards the end of the rope, just grab the leftover rope and pull it through. Make sure the ends of the rope won’t slip through the opening by tightening the last loop.

When you need to use this rope, simply open this end of the daisy chain, give it a little tug and your rope will unfold quickly and easily. I’m sure there are other methods of storing long rope, but this is my favorite way of storing my own. I usually use these ropes in my Sport Emergency Kit, so it comes in handy when I’m in the snow. This method also allows for a quick unravel for my gloved hands.

I hope this blog post helps you store your long ropes if you choose the Daisy Chain Method.

Blogger Recognition Award

November 14, 2017August 12, 2018 / Yen-Van Tran / Leave a comment

11.14.2017

0600

I am very happy to announce that Design Life Hacks has been nominated for the Blogger Recognition Award! After many topics and posts that I’ve covered, I’m glad that I still can create interesting content. 😊

What is the Blogger Recognition Award?

Blogger Recognition Award is given to bloggers by bloggers to encourage and acknowledge the hard work and effort that goes into creating posts. It’s an opportunity for bloggers to recognize one another for each of our contributions. A big thanks to Emilia Cantero Dieguez from The Green Choice for the nomination!

How my blog started?

Living in the Bay Area in California, located in the United States of America, life can be pretty stressful. Nationally, a middle class yearly income for a household of three people is considered to be between $42,000 and $125,000, according to the Pew Research Center. Low-income would be anything under $42,000 and upper-income is above $125,000. Here in the Bay Area, an income of $100,000 is now considered low income.

I believe that if I can share a design hack to make life more simplistic and easier to manage, I should. Transitioning into a zero waste lifestyle started this momentum for my blog. Living a zero waste lifestyle made life simple, cleaning became quick and easy, I even saved money and minimized the errands I had to run during my free time. My daily routine improved and I enjoyed going to work each day as well as coming home and relaxing. You can read more about my story here.

Two pieces of advice if you just start with your blog:

Schedule out what topic you want to talk about and how to correlate them with your social media. Also, stay on top of your social media.
Network, network, network… find bloggers who blog about similar topics as you and collaborate with them. Whatever the purpose of your blog , finding a community to share your ideas and posts with will greatly help expand your viewing statistics and increase visitors to your website.

My nominees!

Christina Kamp > Little Sprouts Learning
Susannah Shmurak > Healthy Green Savvy
Kayla Kamp > Ever Change Productions
Rosie Hill > A Green and Rosie Life
Katy Lauderdale > Skip The Bag
Lyndsey Clayton > Monsoon of Random
Emilie Bradford > and the bee
Amruta Kshemkalyani Tavkar > Sustainability Tribe
Nadine E. Boo > The Zero Journey
Doris Neubauer > Nomad Ocean
Justine Rose > LittleGreen Duckie
Laura Dee > The Mindful Mom Blographer
Lori Starling > The Elephant Mum
Polly Barks > Green Indy Blog
Abbie Burgess > The Pink Paperdoll

When you are nominated, there are a few simple steps that you need to take to accept the award nomination. These are the guidelines:

Write a post about your award
Thank the blogger who nominated you and provide a link to her blog
Give a brief story of how your blog started
Give two pieces of advice for new bloggers
Select up to 15 other bloggers to nominate
Comment on each blog and let them know you have nominated them and provide the link to the post you created.

Congratulations to all nominees! You are an inspiration to me! Once again, many thanks to Emilia, from The Green Choice, for nominating Design Life Hacks.

With Love Always,

Yen-Van Tran

Goals for 2017

February 21, 2017August 12, 2018 / Yen-Van Tran / Leave a comment

02.21.2017

0700

2016-09-17-13-13-21-1-2

My 2017 Goals…

So each year, I try to set up attainable goals. Sometimes I achieve them, sometimes I won’t and sometimes I only achieve a few goals each year. Either way, the ones that were not achieved, will bleed into the upcoming year. I approach this goal setting a few different ways and this year I thought I’d share with you a format that I frequently use now. These goals have two concise categories and that’s personal goals versus professional goals.

My professional goals will be whatever and however I decide to navigate my professional life. That includes where I work, the length of my career, the job titles I want to move up towards and licenses that I need to attain those job titles. In a nutshell, the idea is to layout where you want to be and the steps it’s going to take to get there. This is a sample format that I tend to follow:

Professional Goals:
1. Job Position
  1. Profesional steps to move into the job position you desire and with desired pay
  2. Certificates and licenses needed to qualify for desired position
    1. Which certificates are needed
    2. How much does each certificate/license cost
    3. Frequency of the continuing education credits needed per year
2. Professional community
  1. Steps to network more, and how to come in contact with more people on a more frequent basis
  2. How frequent will networking occur (ie quarterly, yearly, etc.)

You can use the above format, or elaborate on it however you choose. My personal goals has a different format that I use which includes daily goals, weekly goals, yearly goals and long term goals. With this format, it’s a fairly straight forward setup. However, there are a lot of templates floating around on the internet that will map out each week of each month in a play by play format, if that’s what you chose to use. I tend to not have that many goals that would need a more rigorous format, so I use this the style I use.

Personal Goals:
1. Daily Goals:
2. Weekly Goals:
3. Yearly Goals:
4. Long term Goals:

I like to focus more on general time constraints than day to day time constraints. Also, with the general time goals, it allows for unexpected events to occur. This list may change in the sense that new goals may be added to it or adjusted, but I’ve written it out and now it’s a personal contract. So let me show you what goals I’d like to achieve in 2017.

Professional Goals:
1. Continue to work towards becoming a licensed architect.
2. Continue to work towards my LEED AP certification
3. Take scheduled breaks from blogging and the upkeep of my social media
4. Continue to blog, but post once per week, and continue to push for better content
5. Be more active on my social media accounts
Personal Goals:
1. Daily Goals:
  1. Stay healthy
  2. Buckle down on my workout routines
2. Weekly Goals:
  1. Surf more
3. Yearly Goals:
  1. Community Involvement: Get more involved with the non-profit environmental organizations that I currently support, perhaps add some more to that list.
  2. Grow specific vegetables and enough to sustain a household for weekly meals. (This is an ongoing experiment)

So this is a glimpse into what I plan to do. What are some of your goals? Do you like the daily/weekly/yearly/long term goals format? Do any of you have goals set up for 2017?

Freebies And Give Aways

January 24, 2017August 12, 2018 / Yen-Van Tran / 1 Comment

01.24.2017

0800

I don’t like to receive freebies and giveaways. I tend to refuse small gift bags and trinkets that are included in them. When I received them from family members and friends, that’s when I came up with a plan that I implemented years ago, when I lived in San Francisco.

Years ago, when I lived in San Francisco, my studio was directly across the street from Golden Gate Park. This park is the largest park in San Francisco and it was approximately 1,017 acres and over 3 miles running West to East and half a mile running North to South. I would visit my family on the peninsula and always ended up bringing back food. I was given Nutrigrain bars, health bars, and even packaged produce. Because I was starting my zero waste lifestyle in San Francisco, I didn’t want to open these individually packaged items. Instead, I would create care packages for the homeless population, who slept in the park after everyone left.

Let me explain, Golden Gate Park is open from 9am every morning, and closes at 5 pm each evening. Since I lived across the street from the park, I was very aware of the public presence in the park. Each night, after the park closed, the homeless population would move in and set up camp for the night. I used to run along the street that framed the park’s north edge. I would run West and head out to Ocean Beach, then turn around and run back, and I would see them heading into the park.

During that time, I worked the swing shift when I was and EMT, so my hours were strange. But I would put together care packages in which I would hand out to the homeless when I can back from work.

I know that those individually packed items still produced trash but I had a decision to make. The dilemma was, either I refuse the items and inevitably they go into the trash, or I can somehow make good use of it. Not everyone can live a zero waste life and I understood that. Not everyone cares to live a zero waste life and I understood that too.

This was my way of trying to make a positive contribution to a situation I was aware of. When the packages were made, I would hand them out. None of the individual packages were opened so the recipients knew that the food had not been tampered with. Most everyone was open to accepting the food and were thankful for the snacks.

I wrote this post because recently I received a few airline amenity kits from a relative who travels on Delta Airlines for work. She travels a lot so she had a bunch stocked up. I decided to go out and find recipients to give these kits to.

In the day-to-day rush that we live through, it’s reasonable that not everyone is noticed or acknowledged. But if you slow down and look closely, you’ll notice a population that sits in the shadows; a population made up of many circumstances and perhaps painful past stories. Living in California, has its risks and high stakes to bet on. It takes a lot to survive here, much less start a family and establish yourself here. I accept that anyone can become homeless at anytime and it’s always an unfortunate outcome.

Officially 1 Year Old

January 17, 2017August 12, 2018 / Yen-Van Tran / Leave a comment

01.16.17

0800

So my blog officially turned 1 year old on 1/15/2017. I never thought I was going to blog about my lifestyle or what I designed, but after so many people inquired about my zero waste-minimalist lifestyle and subsequently my design hacks- I decided to write it all down… and it just kept going. There are a few things I learned from blogging, not all were pleasant but understood and accepted with gratitude. Here are 10 lessons I learn in my first year of blogging:

You have to start
1. You will not know where your path will lead you until you start walking down that path. You may not know how and why this blog will benefit you, but the only way to find out- is to start.
Write more and find your voice
1. The more you write and brainstorm about what topics you want to cover, the more you’ll realize what voice you want. You’ll discover the identity of your blog and the topics you decide to cover.
Write more and you’ll discover what you’re really trying to say
1. When it comes to covering the basic topics for your blog, you might have that sequence mapped out easily. However, you might write a post and realize that your images don’t support the topic or that you could have approached the subject in a different manner.
Communication is key
1. As technology advances and our tech devices also advance in the sense that they help us communicate and share information faster, writing will always be one of the oldest and greatest forms of communication. The ability to communicate your ideas clearly is critical for a blogger and the audience participating. We are living in a beautiful time where current events and our own opinions on those events need to be stated in a clear and concise manner.
Don’t start blogging just to make money
1. Blogging takes a lot of work. It takes a lot of planning and time management. It is an art form that takes persistence and dedication. Blogging is your space, and for those who want to stop by and read, it’s for their entertainment. But don’t expect to make money, don’t go into this thinking it’ll definitely make money- you have to want to blog, you have to want to write and express ideas.
Good Content
1. Once you figure out the identity of your blog, create good content. Give your readers a reason to visit and spend a few minutes in your space. Whether it’s sharing of knowledge, personal reflections or some tips, but put out good content.
Listen to your audience, listen to the public
1. When your audience responds to a blog post, listen to them. There is a reason why they’re wondering about it or responding to it in your comments section. How you perceive your topics is different from how the internet views it.
Be honest, be you
1. There’s no point in trying to be a different personality behind the safety of a computer screen. Blogging is communication and your readers will be able to tell if it is not your voice. There is a honesty behind blogging, don’t be afraid to be you. You’d be surprised how many people appreciate that.
It’s not a race, it’s a march, a slow walk
1. Blogging can can take up time that you don’t have to spare. But if you give yourself a reasonable schedule, you’ll build your content and other social media slowly. It’s about showing up and being consistent.
No success is worth sacrificing loved ones for
1. Blogging can be fun and even I am proud of the content I’ve created in the past year. However, there was a time when I was blogging in the beginning when I sacrificed valuable time with loved ones. I don’t do that anymore, but I knew that I couldn’t sacrifice my health, my family and my friends for this- it wasn’t worth it.

So for those who are thinking of starting a blog or a journal or anything that they’re willing to share with the public, start… start it now. I can honestly say that when I look back on my content, I’m proud of what I’ve written. This whole site is a process, it’s not definite in its answers or solutions. This site represents a personal process as well as my design process, but both processes are mapped out by time and the lessons learned along the way. In middle school, I had a social studies teacher, Ms. Mathers, who had a banner that she had attached to one of the rafters on her ceiling. It said “KNOWLEDGE IS POWER”. As a 12 year old, I used to re-read that banner when I got bored in class, and I never really understood the value of it. Now I know as an adult, knowledge is power but the voice behind it- is UNSTOPPABLE.

Aloe Vera For Your Skin

December 13, 2016August 14, 2018 / Yen-Van Tran / Leave a comment

12.13.2016

0800

Of all of the plants I recommend owning, the aloe vera plant is one of them. However, aloe vera plants can grow up to 39 inches in height but grow outwards as well with their offsets. There are many benefits to using aloe vera as a topical treatment as well as consuming the plant in a daily diet. Here is a list of benefits of Aloe Vera as a topical treatment:

1. It treats sunburn.

Aloe Vera helps with sunburn through its powerful healing activity at the epithelial level of the skin, a layer of cells that cover the body. It acts as a protective layer on the skin and helps replenish its moisture. Because of its nutritional qualities and antioxidant properties, the skin heals quicker.

2. It acts as a moisturizer.

Aloe moisturizes the skin without giving it a greasy feel, so it’s perfect for anyone with an oily skin complexion. For women who use mineral-based makeup, aloe vera acts as a moisturizer and is great for the face prior to the application to prevents skin drying. For men: Aloe vera gel can be used as an aftershave treatment as its healing properties can treat small cuts caused by shaving.

3. It treats acne.

Aloe vera gel contains two hormones: Auxin and Gibberellins. These two hormones provide wound healing and anti-inflammatory properties that reduce skin inflammation. Giberellin in aloe vera acts as a growth hormone stimulating the growth of new cells. It allows the skin to heal quickly and naturally with minimal scarring.

Aloe is soothing and can reduce skin inflammations, blistering and itchiness, while helping the skin to heal more rapidly. Additionally, in Ayurvedic medicine, Aloe is used to effectively heal chronic skin problems, such as psoriasis, acne and eczema.

4. It fights aging.

As we age, everyone begins to worry about the appearance of fine lines and the loss of elasticity in their skin. Aloe leaves contain a plethora of antioxidants including, beta carotene, vitamin C and E that can help improve the skin’s natural firmness and keep the skin hydrated.

5. It lessens the visibility of stretch marks.

The skin is like one big piece of elastic that’ll expand and contract as needed to accommodate growth. But if the skin stretches too far, too fast (due to pregnancy, rapid weight gain or loss) the elasticity of the skin can be damaged. That’s what leaves those unsightly stretch marks. These marks appear due to minor tears in the layers of the skin caused by sudden and excessive stretching. Aloe vera gel can help hide these stretch marks by healing these wounds.

What I usually do…

I first cut off the leaves of the aloe vera plant and sliced off of the thorns on each side of one of the leaves. I cut the leaf down the centerline through the meat so I could scrap the aloe vera off of each skin section. I gathered the aloe vera I scraped off into a mason jar and then went ahead and scraped the other leaf in the same manner. I composted everything that was left over.

I usually use the aloe vera gel immediately in which I’ll apply it to my skin on my face and body for about an hour and then rinse it off. This is a simple and natural way to moisturize your skin with an organic substance. This plant in addition to my Golden Pothos Ivy air filtering plant are my two favorites that I own. The Golden Pothos filters my indoor air for me and this one provides me with natural moisturizer, win-win.

Why Plant Based And No Packaging

September 7, 2016August 13, 2018 / Yen-Van Tran / Leave a comment

09.07.2016

0800

There are a lot of benefits to a plant based diet. Creating less waste or no waste is beneficial to the planet and our atmosphere for many other reasons. There have been many controversies about plant based diets in regards to protein sufficiency, Vitamin B12 deficiency, and even calcium sufficient intake arguments. By eating a plant based diet, you can avoid plaque buildup in your blood vessels and lower your risk of heart disease, and you benefit from a multitude of health reasons such as:

Diabetes prevention
Hypertension control
Heart health
Weight Loss
Fiber Intake
Vision Value
Skin Care

The list of reasons to start or even try to a plant based diet outweighs the other side of that argument. Here is a list of 9 great reasons why you should start one.

1. Plants Have Less Saturated Fat

Saturated fats, or fats that are saturated with hydrogen, are typically solid at room temperature and are found in meat and animal products like beef, lamb, butter, cheese, and high-fat dairy products. They’re also found in coconut oil, cocoa butter, and palm oil.

According to medical experts at the American Heart Association (AHA), eating saturated fats increases the amount of cholesterol in your blood, which in turn raises your risk for heart disease and stroke. The organization recommends that people on a 2,000-calorie diet have only about 13 grams (g) of saturated fat per day.

2. You Can Cut Fatty Meats From Your Diet

Our bodies need a small amount of cholesterol to function, but most of us make enough on our own without adding it to our diets through fatty meats. Cholesterol is only found in animal-derived food products, not plants.

Why does excessive cholesterol matter? According to the American Heart Association, having high cholesterol in your blood is a major risk factor for heart disease, stroke, and heart attack.

The bad form of cholesterol (LDL) is one of the products that makes up atherosclerotic plaque. Other fats, waste products, and calcium can also contribute to this buildup of plaque in the arteries (which carry blood away from the heart), causing them to become blocked and hardened, and potentially leading to a heart attack or stroke.

Low blood cholesterol levels can be achieved by replacing saturated fats and oils with monounsaturated or polyunsaturated fats, found in foods like avocados, olive oil, and nuts. Less then 10 percent of daily calories should come from saturated fats.

3. Plants Increase Fiber in Your Diet

A well-rounded, plant-based diet should also increase the amount of fiber you get. And increasing fiber is one way to reduce the bad cholesterol circulating in your body, says Joan Salge Blake, RD, clinical associate professor at Boston University’s Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, and a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association.

Fiber interacts with the bad cholesterol in your digestive tract and helps remove it more quickly from your body, Salge Blake says. This decreases the overall amount of bad cholesterol absorbed in your body. Fiber is found in foods like beans, lentils, fruits, vegetables, and nuts, so she recommends making healthy food swaps, like reducing or cutting meat out of chili and adding beans to the pot instead.

4. Eating Less Meat Lowers Diabetes and Obesity Risks

Eating meat, or consuming higher amounts of saturated fat, is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes. Having diabetes, in turn, is thought to make you twice as likely to experience heart disease and stroke, notes the AHA. According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), having diabetes increases your risk of having heart disease or stroke at an earlier age.

5. Fruits and Veggies Lower Blood Pressure

One well-known and often recommended diet for people with hypertension is the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet. While this diet is focused on reducing the amount of sodium in the diet, it also aims to lower meat intake.

The DASH diet calls for you to increase your intake of fruits and vegetables, and to eat only 5 ounces (oz) of protein-based foods daily. You should have no more than 26 oz of meat, poultry, and eggs each week.

6. Plants Enrich Your Diet With Omega-3s

According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, eating omega-3 fatty acids can reduce your risk of heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure, and it can also lower your cholesterol. Omega-3 fatty acids are not made in the body, so the only way to get them is through your diet.

Some kinds of omega-3s, including eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), are found in cold-water fish like salmon, sardines, and tuna. DHA and EPA are converted into usable omega-3s more readily than is the plant-based alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). For this reason, many dietary guidelines that recommend lowering the amount of meat and poultry are increasingly including the regular consumption of fish.

ALA is found in many plant-based foods, including pumpkin seeds, canola oil, soybeans, walnuts, and flaxseeds.

7. A Vegan Diet Adds Beneficial Nutrients

A host of nutrients in a vegan diet are heart-protective, Salge Blake says. Fruits and vegetables are rich in antioxidants, plant sterols, phytochemicals, and potassium, which are all thought to reduce the risk of heart disease.

According to the AHA, potassium helps to reduce the effects of sodium, which is known to raise blood pressure in the body. Potassium is found in a wide range of plant-based foods, including sweet potatoes, spinach, mushrooms, soybeans, almonds, bananas, apricots, tomatoes, and cantaloupe.

8. You Can Avoid Unhealthy Components of Meat

When you replace animal products with plant-based ones, you’re not only adding beneficial nutrients, but you’re taking harmful ones out, too. Along with cholesterol and saturated fats, for example, meat also has heme iron, which comes from the blood in meat and can create reactive oxygen — a contributor to heart attacks, Williams says.

9. With a plant based diet and shopping for these ingredients without packaging, achieving a zero waste lifestyle is quite easy. If you shop in the fresh vegetables and fresh fruit section of the grocery store, it’s easy to find the ones that you like for your daily dietary needs.

A Year From Now

August 15, 2016August 12, 2018 / Yen-Van Tran / 2 Comments

08.15.2016

0800

So I’ve been asking myself the same series of questions for the past four years. I do this at the beginning of the year and then I revisit my answers midway through the year. These questions don’t really fall along the lines of a “New Year’s Resolution”, but they inquire more about growth as an individual. So here they are:

How do you want your future self to be like in one year?
What are the different dreams and goals you would want to be realized by then?
What is your desired status of the areas of your life wheel right now?
1. I want to ….Career/Business?
2. I want to ….Finances?
3. I want to ….Family?
4. I want to ….Friends?
5. I want to ….Love?
6. I want to ….Health?
7. I want to ….Spirituality?
8. I want to ….Recreation?
9. I want to ….Personal growth?
10. I want to ….Contribution?
What hopes do you hold for yourself in the future?
What fears and obstacles do you currently face that you wish to overcome?
What internal resources do you inherently possess that will help you, now and always?
How will you remember what you have to offer, and how will you continue to know yourself and your presence as a contribution to this world?
What are ways that you can seek to love your future self no matter how much the future varies from what you expect it would be?

I ask these questions because I like to hold myself accountable. I save these questions in my cloud each year and I’ve revisited my answers from the past. Some answers have stayed true, some have not. Some answers altered due to unforeseen circumstances.

I’m posting these questions now because at this point we are halfway through the year and I’m wondering if you guys ever visit these kinds of questions. Even in your jobs, there’s an evaluation of your growth and your plan and position in the company. And even if you are self employed, there is still growth to be evaluated. Some of these questions may not have to be answered or may not have a complex answer, but I do think revisiting who you are and what you want is always a good notion.

Spreading The Zero Waste Word

July 4, 2016August 12, 2018 / Yen-Van Tran / 3 Comments

07.04.2016

0800

As the Zero Waste movement as started to gain momentum in the past few years, it’s important for those who currently practice living a zero waste lifestyle to continue to spread the zero waste word. I’ve been approached a few times in grocery stores and in my work place of how and why I transfer food in cloth bags and Ball Mason jars. I usually take this time to simply explain the zero waste movement, not in-depth but a simple explanation; “To eliminate my trash output into the environment”. In the beginning of my journey, I noticed that I received awkward stares from strangers at grocery stores and very few people asked why I carried around cloth bags. I noticed confused looks as I would fill up my bags or jars at the grocery store though, I tink they might have thought I was stealing the bulk foods as I filled up my bags. The cashiers noticed but they had to by the time it was my turn to pay for my items. A few people have told me that they wanted to start “going zero waste” but it seemed overwhelming and they didn’t know where to begin. That made perfect sense since I felt the same way when I first started. For that reason, I carry around extra produce bags that I’ve sewn to give out to people who want to get started. I’ve already recorded the tare weights on them, so it’s a matter of the customer filling up the bag and relaying the PLU number to the cashier. I made it a point to sew extra bags to give away because I want those who want to start this lifestyle to be able to physically hold an example of how to get started. Granted, anyone could look up on YouTube or Pintrest of how to sew cloth bags, but this is my way of encouraging people with a some small starter cloth produce bags.

Also, when you lead by example, you might be surprised who will follow suite. Sometimes speaking about the zero waste movement won’t fit every environment. There will be environments which everything that is wasted will not be salvaged and easing thi=ose in that environment into the zero waste movement will take time. It takes a lot of effort to start living a zero waste life because there are sacrifices that each person must make and not all will be onboard. For instance my work place uses quite a bit of paper and they don’t compost. I would be great if we could start to compost, but that proposal also involves our building landlord to agree to it and so far he won’t. One of the smaller steps I have taken at work is introducing my Office Manager to the Grounds To Grow On Program by Keurig.

It’s still very important that we continue to talk about this issue due to the fact that we continue to produce and use plastic trash which is doing more damage to the environment than we can recover.

Shoulder Bag Hacks

June 6, 2016August 12, 2018 / Yen-Van Tran / Leave a comment

06.06.2016

0800

Materials:

Metal rings
Carabiners
Shoelace

In an earlier post, titled Always Consider Gravity, I wrote about my consideration of gravity when it came to organizing my spaces. This consideration also applies to individual items and each system that’s working within it.

Consider my purse/shoulder bag. I carry a few items in my shoulder bag that needs to be organized easily. I specifically choose this bag due to it’s height and the materials it was made with. However, the reason why I needed a tall shoulder bag was for the fact that I would be carrying around items that were tall in height, and if I used a bag that sat horizontally- I would be constantly digging through my bag to find items. With this bag, I can eliminate the digging around part and not waste time.

I always attach rings to the interior framework of my bags. I always have carabiners attached to everything I carry around so it makes sense that I create a spot for them to be attached to. For this reason, I usually will have at least two rings attached inside the frame of my bag.

Nowadays, I seem to always carry around a set of utensils, a coffee tumbler, water bottle, cell phone, keys and my wallet. There are days when I may leave the coffee tumbler and utensils at home, depending on my activity for the day. For the most part, I will always have my wallet, cell phone, keys and water bottle with me. I usually hook my wallet and keys together on one ring and on the other ring will be my water bottle and utensils. Because the water bottle is heavy compared to the combined weight of my other items, it usually gets it’s own ring. The extra bag that’s attached to the same ring as my water bottle is the bag I carry my utensils in. It’s also the bag I will carry my lunch in during the workweek. I don’t like to carry an external bag for lunches because I don’t like to carry items in my hand. If there is no other choice, I’ll carry items by hand, but I prefer my hands to be free. So during the work week, I’ll pack my breakfast, lunch and a smoothie into that bag for each day I go to work. On the weekends, that bag tends to be less utilized.

In a way I’ve divided my bag up into the “food” end or “all the other stuff” end. I’ve always organized the inside of my purses and bags this way and it seems to work. I organized my backpack similar to this method during graduate school and also during undergrad; partly because I like my bags organized and partly because as an art & design student, you carry a lot of stuff to class and organization is necessary.

I don’t like searching for my keys or wallet because that wastes time, which irritates me. I like my items convenient and in place ready to be used. These are some of my hacks, I hope they may come in handy for you as well.

Lead By Example

May 18, 2016August 12, 2018 / Yen-Van Tran / 2 Comments

05.18.2016

0800

So I got a new job recently and there was a lot of new people to get to know and a new environment to get used to. I also had a new routine to make a part of my day-to-day life. With my new job, my day gets started pretty early which also means that I don’t make my morning coffee at home like I used to. I usually make my morning coffee in my French Press. At my job the company has a Keurig machine, and my co-workers love using it. I love my morning coffee and I like getting my started with a warm drink.

However, I disliked using the Keurig machine due to the painful reputation that Keurig cup pods go straight to the landfill. Instead of giving up coffee and leaving out a part of my day that I love to experience, I had to find an answer to the Keurig cup pod dilemma. I started researching on different ways to recycle these pods and I came across two different comapnies. The first company is TerraCycle and they have a Coffee Capsules Zero Waste Box where you can pay a small fee for the box and then print out a packaging slip to send back to TerraCycle when the box is full. The other company I found is called Grounds To Grow On which is a part of the Keurig company. For a small fee, they will drop off a Grounds To Grow On box and pick up when the box is full. This program offers two different sized boxes, so one can sit on the kitchen counter or sit on the floor. I prefered using the Grounds To Grow On program due to the benefit of the free delivery and pick up advantage.

I didn’t know how my co-workers would feel about the program because it wasn’t free. We would be paying for Keurig to haul away our used pods AFTER they already bought the machine and still continue to buy the pods. So essentially, they would pay for more trash to be hauled away. I spent a week to get to know my co-workers and the culture at my new job. During that time, I continued to collect the Keurig cup pods on my own knowing full well that the company may not want to join the recycling program. I knew that even if they didn’t want to join, I would join and recycle the pods myself.

A few of my co-workers did see me bring pods back to my desk, but I always just smiled and kept walking, I honestly don’t know what they thought I was doing. Maybe they just thought the new kid on the block was just strange and liked to collect trash. At the end of the first week, I finally brought it up to the office manager and she researched the program. I found out that a lot of my co-workers were on board with the program and saw my cardboard box of Keurig pods that I had been collecting. They were all very supportive of the program and I was relieved to hear it. There is now a new location to toss the used pods into, and I couldn’t be happier.

Living a zero waste life isn’t an easy lifestyle for everyone to adapt to. It takes time, energy, and sacrifice to even start it. Not everything we eat is organic, not everything we own is toxic free and even everyday routines and possessions are used for the most part, out of convenience. The speed at which we tend to run our lives moves so fast, that it’s sometimes hard to take time out to adjust your day-to-day routine, but if you tackle one task a day, it eventually becomes a smooth and less stressful ride through life. For me, this issue with the Keurig cup pods was a task I wanted to tackle. The other alternative answer to this problem is to not use the machine at all, not order pods anymore, but who am I to demand that everyone in the office give up their expensive machine? With this Grounds To Grow On program, perhaps it will spark a conversation to convert the office into a zero waste office.

So lead by example. Lead by example knowing that you might be standing alone. I signed up for the program, knowing full well that the office may not want to join it. I was prepared to be known as the Keurig Cup pod collector of the office and I would pay for the program on my own, but is that a very big sacrifice? In the overall scheme of the Keurig cup pod crisis, paying a small fee to have this specific trash hauled away , doesn’t seem that bad. At least with every sip of coffee I made from that machine, I know I was trying to do my part in the larger Keurig cup pod pollution.

End of the Vietnam War

April 30, 2016August 12, 2018 / Yen-Van Tran / 2 Comments

04.30.2016

0800

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Horst Faas/Associated Press. A farmer helplessly held the body of his dead child as South Vietnamese troops looked on. March 19, 1964. The child had been killed as government forces pursued guerrillas into a village near the Cambodian border. Lens Blog, New York Times

Vietnam War November 1, 1955 – April 30, 1975 (19 years, 5 months, 4 weeks, 1 day)

There’s so much history involved with this was that it’s too much to write about in one blog post. My family is from South Vietnam and my father was drafted into the South Vietnam Army. He was also held captive for 3 years by the Viet Cong after the Fall of Saigon. He escaped and was deemed a POW. He doesn’t speak much of his experience either, I think most POWs don’t. It was a rough time in history, for everyone. There were protests in the United States, families were torn apart, and refugees fled seeking asylum in the US. There was so much chaos and pain- it’s unimaginable.

It wasn’t until the age of 14 when my mom started revealing to me the details of our family members, including her escape from the Viet Cong. She told me “You would run until your feet would bleed. You can see bodies dropping around you as the Viet Cong shot the refugees trying to escape. They didn’t care. You ran because your life depended on it and you hoped the next bullet wouldn’t hit you. Each time you ran from them, you would lose track of your loved ones because running in a group just means you’re a larger target. You had to disperse, to create the illusion of smaller moving targets. Dispersing meant you would be alone, but you could save your life as well as the others.” She attempted to escape 4 times because during the first 3 times, someone had informed the Viet Cong and the location to meet up was compromised.

I have an aunt, who always stood out in my mind. She was so sweet and doted on the kids when we would visit. She made you feel like you were the #1 kid in the whole wide world. During this conversation, I asked my mom why she never had kids, she was loving and kind and seemed to have so much love to give. My mom revealed to me that she once had two young boys and a husband when she was on the boat that was headed to the US. On the boat, the men were on the top deck and the women and children stayed on the bottom deck. The boat had approached a Korean oil tanker and the captain asked if they could board the tanker. It didn’t make any sense that he wanted the passengers to board the tanker because the refuges were not allowed into Korea, they were not granted sanction in Korea. For whatever reason, the captain made his decision. Unfortunately, as the boat got closer to the oil tanker, the wave that it had created while cutting through the ocean water, rocked the boat and shook it. The wave was strong enough that people were thrown overboard and injuries were sustained on the top and bottom decks. At the exact same time, my aunt was climbing the access ladder, with one of her boys in her arms, the other was ahead of her on the ladder. They were trying to get to the top level to be with her husband so they could be ready to board the oil tanker.

When the wave had hit the boat, she was knocked off of the ladder and so were her boys. When she woke up, she was on the lower level of the boat again, lying next to other victims who were recovering from injuries attained during the shake up. Another refugee informed her that they were rolling the deceased bodies into the ocean. They couldn’t carry the dead across the Pacific Ocean because they would rot horribly and the damage they sustained from the wave was already an issue. She informed my aunt, that my aunt had been placed with the dead bodies, because they thought she had died, but after another check, they realized she was breathing- so they brought her downstairs to recover. When my aunt got to the top level, she saw that her husband and her two sons were among those who were deceased. When the time came for her husband and sons to be rolled into the ocean, she helped roll them off of the boat. And that was it, they were gone.

When she arrived in the US, she was alone, and didn’t know any English. Inevitably, she was placed in a psychiatric facility for some time. So many had passed during that event, I’m not sure she ever recovered from the incident. I don’t know if she had time to mourn the loss of her family, or time to heal from the emotional scars, but I do know that she felt lost and alone in a strange land. She eventually met my uncle whom is now her current husband and they’ve been married ever since- but behind her smiles, she was never the same again.

The reason why I tell this story, is that there are so, so many stories such as that one, which have never been told. As first generation American, I have no idea what it took for my relatives to come here. Guerrilla warfare is hand to hand combat and if you couldn’t stand your ground- you would easily be killed by the hands of the other. I look at my relatives now, and I wonder what stories they have not told. I wonder what life was like, the fear they felt as they watched their country collapsing, their homes being destroyed and the future filling up with unknown endings.

I have a deep respect for life and people. Everyone has a story. Everyone has a past. Please ask, learn and spread that knowledge. Every single one of us has a story, perhaps not about war, maybe trauma, maybe a moment that changed our lives- but every single person has a story. I always knew war was bad, and it took 14 years to finally hear the details of how bad it was through my mom’s eyes. Some stories are so painful they they can’t be repeated, but for the stories that can, I hope each person takes something away from it.

130831192539-17-iconic-vietnam-napalm---restricted-horizontal-large-gallery

South Vietnamese forces follow after terrified children, including 9-year-old Kim Phuc, center, as they run down Route 1 near Trang Bang after an aerial napalm attack on suspected Viet Cong hiding places on June 8, 1972. A South Vietnamese plane accidentally dropped its flaming napalm on South Vietnamese troops and civilians. The terrified girl had ripped off her burning clothes while fleeing. The children from left to right are: Phan Thanh Tam, younger brother of Kim Phuc, who lost an eye, Phan Thanh Phouc, youngest brother of Kim Phuc, Kim Phuc, and Kim’s cousins Ho Van Bon, and Ho Thi Ting. Behind them are soldiers of the Vietnam Army 25th Division. (AP Photo/Nick Ut) CNN, 25 of The Most Iconic Photographs

Know Your Knots

February 22, 2016August 12, 2018 / Yen-Van Tran / 5 Comments

02.22.2016

0845

Materials:

Rope

Tools:

Pole to test out knots on

As someone who loves to keep extra rope and twine around, it makes sense that I made it a point to learn how to tie knots. But in addition to that, is that I actually carry a 100 foot parachord (Parachute cord) in my snowboarding backpack when I go up to the mountains. If you understand how to tie certain knots in certain situations, that knowledge can help you survive a situation, or help you while working over heights or water. Just knowing how to tie a few knots can still help you in many situations. Here are some knots that might be helpful:

Reef Knot- This knot is a binding knot for connecting two lines together or a line around an object. It’s simple and effective and it is also known as a square knot.
Clove Hitch- This knot can secure a line to a tree or post quickly, but it needs an anchor or it will slip.
Bowline- This knot can create a nonadjustable loop at the end of the line, so the shape stays fixed.
Figure 8- This knot creates a stopping knot at the end of a line. This prevents the rope from unraveling and can also keep the rope from slipping past another rope.
Sheet Bend- This technique can tie two different types of rope material together. This knot allows the joining of different thicknesses of rope as well.
Two Half Hitches- This knot allows a line to be secured to trees or poles
Taut Line Hitch- This is an adjustable loop knot that will grip as long as there is tension on the “taut” side of the loop. Tension is maintained by sliding the hitch to adjust size of the loop. It can be used to secure tent lines or securing loads on vehicles.
Improved Clinch Knot- This knot is used to secure a fishing line to a fishing lure or an artificial fly.
Water Knot- This knot secures webbing, belts and straps together
Rolling Hitch- A rolling hitch is used to attach a rope to a rod, pole or another rope. It is used for lengthwise pull along an object rather than at right angles. The rolling hitch is designed to resist lengthwise movement for only a single direction of pull.
Prusik Knot- This knot is a friction hitch and it is used to put a loop of cord around a rope. It is used in climbing, mountaineering and rope rescue.
Timber Hitch- This hitch will secure a rope around a cylindrical object. It is secure as long as tension is maintained but can be easily untied even after hauling a heavy load of weight.
Blood Knot- This knot is used in fishing to secure two lines together. It will join sections of nylon line, while maintaining a high portion of the line’s inherent strength.
Artillery Loop- This knot creates a loop on the bight (the slack part between two ends of a rope). As long as the artillery loop is loaded, it will not slip and contract.
Carrick Bend- This knot is used to join two lines together. It can be used for heavy rope or cable that is too stiff to bend into other hitches.

If you keep in mind a few of these knots, they may very well help you in dire situations. It is a simple skill to know these knots by heart, but it can be one of the most useful as well. I always use ropes for a number of projects and situations and I have learned that the physics that go into tying a knot is so self sustainable, that I don’t have to worry about much else.