Radical Homemaker

Live Dangerously: Ten Easy Steps to Becoming a Radical Homemaker

When I first released Radical Homemakers: Reclaiming Domesticity from a Consumer Culture, I was advised to make a list of "easy steps for becoming a radical homemaker" as part of my publicity outreach materials. My shoulders slumped at the very thought: Three years of research about the social, economic, and ecological significance of homemaking, and I had to reduce it to 10 easy tips? I didn't see a to-do list as a viable route to a dramatic shift in thinking, beliefs, and behaviors. But since the objective of such a list was smoother discussion and communication of Radical Homemaking ideas with the public, I did it.

I came up with the simplest things I could imagine—like committing to hanging laundry out to dry, dedicating a portion of the lawn to a vegetable garden, making an effort to get to know neighbors to enable greater cooperation and reduce resource consumption. I would perfunctorily refer back to them when radio dialogues flagged, when interviews seemed to be getting off track, or to distract myself when an occasional wave of personal sarcasm (I do have them on occasion) threatened to jeopardize an otherwise polite discourse about the book. After about 40 media interviews, I was pretty good at rattling them off, and I began to see their power and significance beyond helping me to be polite.

Her list:

* Commit to hanging your laundry out to dry.

* Dedicate a portion of your lawn to a vegetable garden.

* Get to know your neighbors. Cooperate to save money and resources.

* Go to your local farmers' market each week before you head to the grocery store.

* Do some spring cleaning to identify everything in your home that you absolutely don't need. Donate to help others save money and resources.

* Make a commitment to start carrying your own reusable bags and use them on all your shopping trips.

* Choose one local food item to learn how to preserve for yourself for the winter. Get your family to spend more evenings at home, preferably with the TV off.

* Cook for your family.

* Focus on enjoying what you have and who are with. Stop fixating on what you think you may need, or how things could be better "if only."

Simple things to do to break that consumer culture rut you're in.