Author: The Evergreen Guide

A suburban girl who daydreams way too often, inspired by a bit of everything. Equal parts mindfulness and absentmindedness. She/Her/Hers. Fil-Am. 26. Sun in Pisces, Sagittarius moon & Gemini rising. INFP-T. San Francisco Bay Area. Pakikipagkapwa-tao.
beauty & personal care

Review: Ethique Bar Minimum & In The Buff Bars

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Review: Ethique Bar Minimum & In The Buff Bars

When I found out that Ethique came out with a ‘super-sensitive’ bar line, I was over the moon. Unscented, free of palm oil, and free of coconut oil? Yes, please. Like the rest of Ethique’s line of products, it is also SLS and SLES-free (sodium lauryl sulfate, and sodium lauryl ether sulfate)

Previously, I have been using Ethique’s Heali Kiwi shampoo and The Guardian conditioner bars. They worked well for my hair. But even so, my temperamental scalp wasn’t as happy as it could be. Due to iron deficiency and thyroid issues, I have indomitable scalp eczema. Vitamin supplements and using a shower head filter for the hard water alleviates the dry skin somewhat; but the itchy patches at the base of my scalp still persist after a shower, even if I didn’t sweat profusely (my major trigger for flare-ups). Using Heali Kiwi/The Guardian I still left a slightly heavy feeling on my scalp that felt a bit off, and the eczema itchiness appeared almost immediately after a shower.

I had a sneaking suspicion that Heali Kiwi and The Guardian was not a good match for my sensitive skin, either from the essential oils used for fragrance or from coconut oil. I’ve stopped using coconut oil on my body for years, but for a while I couldn’t find shampoo bars free from coconut oil and didn’t leave a greasy film on my scalp. How pleasantly surprised I was to find that Ethique came out with a coconut-free line!

Continue reading “Review: Ethique Bar Minimum & In The Buff Bars” →

social justice

Exclusion in the Environmental Movement, a Kiss The Ground Film Critique

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Exclusion in the Environmental Movement, a Kiss The Ground Film Critique

For #WorldSoilDay, let us look at a movement revolving around soil health and issues on diversity and inclusion it faces.

(via IMP Awards)

Kiss The Ground has been described as groundbreaking, but I find that it only manages to scratch the surface. I don’t have indigenous roots as a Filipino-American woman and my family does not have experience working or owning farms. Regardless of my background, I was left feeling very jaded on behalf of indigenous peoples and farmers of color internationally after watching this film on Netflix. My grievance is about the missed opportunity to showcase Traditional Ecological Knowledge and diversity in agriculture to a wide audience.

Kiss The Ground is a 2020 full-length documentary. Their website describes it as a film “that sheds light on an new, old approach to farming called “regenerative agriculture” that has the potential to balance our climate, replenish our vast water supplies, and feed the world”. I went into watching the film blind; I didn’t know about the directors or producers (besides assuming, correctly, that they were white) and I haven’t even watched a lot of movies of the narrator either. Nonetheless, I thought that the film might teach me more about regenerative agriculture. By the end of the film, I was left feeling fed-up at the hollow hope it offered.

Continue reading “Exclusion in the Environmental Movement, a Kiss The Ground Film Critique” →

health & wellness

Recreation & Self-Care In The Fight Against Climate Change

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Recreation & Self-Care In The Fight Against Climate Change
(Illustration by @gloriapittmann via Giphy)

I originally shared these two quotes in my Intro to Recreation, Parks, and Tourism (RPT) class this semester, but I wanted to share them here because these messages are so important and relevant! They revolve around the dire need for self-care as we face climate change and try to mitigate and adapt to our rapidly changing world. I think this advice can be applicable to any variety of activism and work.

Susanne C. Moser
(via allwecansave.earth)

These are quotes from the essay titled “The Adaptive Mind” by Susanne C. Moser, PhD., a social science researcher and consultant revolving around the climate change adaption field; her work “focuses on equitable adaptation and transformation in the face of climate change and interlocking stresses; on climate change communication in support of social change; decision support and the interaction between scientists, policy-makers and the public” (read more about Moser on her website here).

(via penguinrandomhouseaudio.com)

This essay was written for the fantastic book All We Can Save by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson and Katharine K. Wilkinson. The anthology is an all-womxn work collection of essays, stories, and poetry about the climate crisis, published just this year—it really could not have been published at a more relevant time. I’ve only just begun reading through this absolute precious gemstone of a book, and it’s going slowly due to how hard-hitting each and every single publication is.

Anyhow, here is the first quote that really resonated with me…

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journaling

2021 Calendar Printables

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2021 Calendar Printables
Some washi tape came with small strips.
I’ve been using them to decorate like this!

As we wait for this year to finally be over, why not prepare your bullet journal for 2021? Here are some free printables I created with all the months of 2021, for those who don’t have the time or energy to write it by hand!

As I shared before, my bullet journal lasts the 12 months, but I prefer to start in July and end in June of the following year. As a student, I utilize my summer free time to journal prep. When setting up my Future Log–which goes into 2021–I opt to print these mini calendars. I like the clean look! It’s also easy to dress up with thin washi strips.

There are two versions: one with a 2 square-inch border when printed at 100% scale, and the other without borders. The borders are meant to be decorative or help you keep a straight line when cutting them out. The version with no borders is available for those who prefer them without.

Continue reading “2021 Calendar Printables” →

sustainability

TerraCycle’s Free Recycling Programs

by The Evergreen Guide1 Comment on TerraCycle’s Free Recycling Programs
TerraCycle’s Free Recycling Programs
From their ‘About’ page; “TerraCycle offers a range of national, easy-to-use recycling platforms allowing everyone to #RecycleEverything” (via TerraCycle)
(via TerraCycle)

Hi everyone! I’d like to quickly highlight this amazing resource. Terracycle coordinates national recycling programs, either with free shipping labels to the correct recycling facilities or purchasing a designated recycling box. They also partner with physical locations for drop-off recycling.

There is a wide array of recycling programs covering various items from e-waste, batteries, and water filters, to specific brands of make-up and personal care product packaging. Most programs use the free shipping label option, in which you use any old cardboard box to package your items for recycling.

(via White Leaf Provisions)

Continue reading “TerraCycle’s Free Recycling Programs” →

social justice

Summary of CA 2020 Propositions

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Summary of CA 2020 Propositions

Originally, I formatted this summarization to share with classmates in my Environmental Studies course (our professor has forums set up to talk about this incredibly important election, super neat!) However, I thought I should also include it here on my blog to share with others who aren’t in my class.

(via sos.ca.gov)

In California, 12 statewide ballot propositions are on the ballot for November elections in 2020 (numbered 14 through 25).

The “nonpartisan, nonprofit journalism venture” CalMatters has a very good abridged summary of the propositions on the CA ballot, linked here. It’s also been translated into Spanish, in case you or your relatives would prefer to read en español.

For some reason, they don’t list it in chronological order (annoying, at least for me) so I listed it in order with its’ general summary below. Hope this helps you as it helps me!!!

Before we get started: please, please register to vote–the deadline to register is October 19th!

Continue reading “Summary of CA 2020 Propositions” →

sustainability

Black Lives Matter and Slow Fashion

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Black Lives Matter and Slow Fashion
(Illustration credit to @meowwolf via Giphy)

Black Lives Matter!

During this politically charged time—on #blackoutday2020—I want to highlight the topic of how supporting the Black Lives Matter movement through shopping at BIPOC-owned businesses is also intrinsically tied to sustainability and environmental justice, and more specifically in regards to slow fashion.

The issue with fast fashion is that we constantly buy brand-new, cheap clothes & accessories, which have such low prices bc the companies who sell them profits off of paying their workers below living wages and cheap materials. These very same clothes will be quickly dumped into landfills–yes, even after you’ve donated them–because they are deliberately made to be of low quality and NOT made to last. Strategic marketing also pursuades people to keep buying new clothes each season in order to keep up with the latest trends…

Continue reading “Black Lives Matter and Slow Fashion” →

my personal life

This isn’t my first time blogging!

by The Evergreen GuideLeave a Comment on This isn’t my first time blogging!

I’ve been on a couple of other platforms before: Tumblr and Blogspot… have we met before?

You may recognize me from my super old Tumblr blog, one was my personal blog and the one linked here specifically on Mori Girl fashion and lifestyle. At the time I was captivated by the Japanese subculture that literally translates into ‘forest girl’ as a way to feel closer to nature. Tumblr is where I uploaded some of my first outfits, where I began collecting photos of fashion and lifestyle inspiration, and generally how I became interested in blogging.

Continue reading “This isn’t my first time blogging!” →

my personal life

Hiatus

by The Evergreen GuideLeave a Comment on Hiatus

For the past few months, I’ve had an incredibly busy schedule!

From school, work, scholarship applications, applying for health insurance before my 26th birthday, starting a new hobby of crafting for Dungeons and Dragons, bullet journaling, preparing myself for Animal Crossing: New Horizons transferring out of community college to a University, I’ve had little time to invest in writing new things for this blog.

(via Giphy)

I’m currently just taking things each day at a time, doing what I can for individual tasks due each day. But man, is it tiring to have so many different and varying priorities! As a result, I expect that I won’t have much time to post things on my blog, at least not until the summertime once this school semester ends.

Additionally, I’ve noticed throughout my last blog posts I tend to overwrite—going forward, I will try to make posts much shorter for both my own sake and for future readers.

This isn’t a farewell—it’s more like ‘see you soon’!