Episode 57

New Year's Resolutions For The Climate (part 2)

Episode Summary: In this episode, Brian and Leekei talk about what they are resolving to do in 2023.

They discussed the joy associated with picking up trash and growing food indoors.

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Featuring Carbon Almanac Contributors Brian D Tormey and Leekei Tang

Brian is a Real Estate Title Insurance Professional and Goat Farmer in the US.

Leekei is a fashion business founder, a business coach, an international development expert and podcaster from Paris, France.  

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The CarbonSessions Podcast is produced and edited by Leekei Tang, Steve Heatherington and Rob Slater.

Transcript
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Hi, I'm Ima.

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I live in Scotland.

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Hi, I'm Jen and I'm from Canada.

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Hi, I'm Ola Vanji and I'm from Nigeria.

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Hello, I'm Leaky and I live in Paris.

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Hey, I'm Rod.

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I'm from Peru.

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Welcome to Carbon Sessions.

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A podcast with carbon conversations for every day with everyone

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from everywhere in the world.

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In our conversations, we share ideas, perspectives, questions, and things we

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can actually do to make a difference.

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So don't be shy.

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Join our carbon sessions because it's not too late.

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Hi Brian.

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Hi leaky.

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Happy New Year.

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Happy New Year, . Well, for those of you listening, we we, it's sort of

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funny to us because we're recording this, knowing that you'll be listening

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to this right into the new year, but for us, it's still 2022 at the moment.

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And actually when you will be listening to this, you would also have listened

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to our last episode of 2022, which is the New Year's resolution of Ji Jen.

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And myself, but we haven't.

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The newest reservation from Brian, not yet, but excited to chat about him.

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Hmm.

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So recently we had a guest speaker on one of our carbon session

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podcasts, uh, named Josh spk.

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Hmm.

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And since that podcast, uh, recording session, Josh and I have then gone off on

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a whole other wonderful thread together that I've been, uh, working with him

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on that has led me to really learning a lot more, and both going through myself.

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The, what he refers to as the spodak method.

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And, and I've sort of learned a lot about how he's approached different

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resolutions and changes in his life, habit changes, and then in going

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through this SPDC method and I encourage everyone to go check out, uh, his

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website and, and go read more about it.

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And he's got some great TED talks.

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In going through this process, it's a, it's sort of a method of

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coming to finding some things that you want to change in your life

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through truly intrinsic motivation.

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Tell me more.

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I would like to hear more about this.

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Yeah, so, so, you know, often, you know, in the past I've done, I, I routinely

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do near New Year's resolutions and, and often they're things like, you know, many

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years ago I used to always put sugar in my coffee and, and one year I was like, okay.

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No more sugar in my coffee.

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Like, hmm.

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Done.

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Um, and from that day forward, I don't, I don't think I've ever put

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a, a teaspoon of sugar in my coffee.

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Um, and I think I'm a little bit happier and healthier and

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better for that resolution.

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But it was, it was, it was an intrinsic motivation, sort of an internal

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thing, but it was also a little bit extrinsic of like, oh, I know this is

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a thing that the world is telling me I should have less sugar in my diet.

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So it was a little bit, sort of from the outside.

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, but I've ended up being happy with it.

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Well, Josh and his method really focus on sort of helping find.

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A kind of thing that you want to change from a truly intrinsic level and sort of

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have, you know, an emotional connection to why you're making this change.

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And so recently, one of the things I did with Josh was in going through this

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method was, uh, we focused on some of my own memories, uh, in the environment

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and, uh, sort of the natural world.

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And it led me to going and doing.

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Some picking up trash along the road, , uh, near my home.

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And it was this sort of very interesting experience as part of this methodology.

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And so I, I, it was, and it was fun.

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I was, it, it started from this place of like, okay, I wanna,

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I want to go, like, I haven't experienced this part of my community.

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I, if I'm gonna be on that road, I'm driving along it, but it's

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a beautiful section of road.

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And so I went and walked along it instead and picked up trash along.

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And that's led to, you know, sort of some interesting sort of experiences.

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And I will say, walking along and picking up trash was a, a very.

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Eye-opening kind of experience, um, that has turned out to be a fun experience.

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Mm-hmm.

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, like, I've actually been having fun.

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I've now been, I've gone and done it a few more times since then, and here

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in the northeast of the United States.

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It's pretty cold right now.

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And so it's, you know, I bundle up and I go early in the morning when

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traffic is low, uh, and go along and pick up some trash and it's, , it's

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sort of like very intellectually, uh, like I've, I've learned so

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many things by just like looking at the trash I'm picking up mm-hmm.

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, like I, I, I feel like every time I'm picking up something

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new, there's this like, uh, this story behind, why is this here?

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Yes.

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Hmm.

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Yeah.

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And, and, and I've been surprised at some of the patterns of what

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I'm finding, um, along the road.

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And so I think for me, one of my New Year's resolutions is going to be, and

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it's, it's not, I'm doing it for the extrinsic, you know, I want the road

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to look a little bit nicer and I want the, um, you know, the, the litter to

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not be there and not, you know, get down into the Hudson River and, and

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our waterways and, you know, those are my extrinsic, but really there's

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this like, deep, enjoyable, and.

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Intrinsic motivation that I really am having fun.

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This all started as a memory of some of, you know, where I grew up in Oregon and

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this, this sort of pristine landscape.

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And it sort of started there and then turned into this like,

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let me go experience this part.

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And now I'm having a lot of fun.

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And, and I think many of us if asked like, would you go walk along

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the roadside and pick up trash?

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Like you might say yes as a like, oh, I'm ob Yes, I will, but it's.

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It's a burden that I'm agreeing to.

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And I have to say I'm, because of how I came to this idea and how it's

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been going so far, it's one that I'm sincerely enjoying and having fun with.

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I listen to podcasts while I'm doing it and enjoy the beautiful nature around

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me, and, and, and I've actually been really enjoying the, the intellectual

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stimulation of sort of thinking.

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What's, where this trash is coming from and what's the story behind it?

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So, so for me, roadside litter pickup, I think is, is one of my New

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Year's resolutions that, that, as I've done in the past, I really try

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to make them, not like a one year resolution, but a, like, this is a

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thing I'm gonna do going forward.

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Whoa.

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This you make, you make it sound like.

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, um, split highly spiritual activity, uh, and connecting with yourself.

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Connecting with others, connecting with the past.

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That's fantastic.

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. Yeah, it's, it's been, it really has been fun.

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Like I've, you know, some of the things that, you know, I, I, it's, it's also

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influencing some of my other things as I'm going through, like the amount of

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bags, you know, and, and coffee cups.

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And you know, for me, one of the interesting things was like,

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I've been astounded at how many 80% full water bottles I found.

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Oh.

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Where, like, it's still closed and like someone had it and then threw

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it out their window after having, I don't know, two or three sips of water.

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Mm-hmm.

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, like I, I've been sort of dumbfounded.

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So it's really had me, it's just caused me to like, also throughout my day,

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every sit time I see a water bottle, like a, a disposable plastic water bottle.

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, it's actually had me like reflecting back to my walks.

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Mm-hmm.

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in this, you know, in this way from the day.

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So it's been, it's been sort of, yeah.

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Very spiritual and fun and I've really been enjoying it and it's

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gotten me actually closer to nature.

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Like it's a reason I'm out spending time walking in what is, yes, it's a

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road, but it's, there's beautiful trees and I'm actually getting close to.

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, you know, like the ground and like seeing what's happening and

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it's sort of untended wilderness.

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Mm-hmm.

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in the way that like our parks and hiking trails often are very tended.

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Mm-hmm.

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and some, you know, a sense manicured mm-hmm.

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. So it's been sort of fun to see this like wild part of like, I don't know

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what's growing where and along the road.

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Yeah.

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And because you're doing it, People, you are very visible and other people

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might be inspired by what you're doing.

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And so maybe you are starting a movement.

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maybe, maybe I, I am wearing, you know, it's, again, it's very cold, so I'm

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wearing, and I'm along the road, so I'm wearing like a very bright orange.

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Coat . Um, so I'm definitely visibly noticeable.

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Uh, maybe people in my community will see who I am and you're doing it yourself

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or you, uh, you wanted, uh, you, are you okay with doing it with other people?

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Because it seems like a very solitary activity the way you are describing it.

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. It's, you know, I think it's, um, it's interesting.

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I so far have been enjoying, actually, one of the other things that came out

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of one of the pod podcasts, uh, the TCA community podcast, I was looking,

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listening to was some note about getting sunlight on your face in the morning.

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Mm-hmm.

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, like, see it, looking at the sun directly and getting that as a,

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as a, as a health, uh, thing.

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And so it's one of the things, you know, I'm going early in the morning

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and now instead, I have a moment to be standing there and like go look at

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the sky for a couple minutes and, and see that, and I wouldn't want to give

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up on some of the solitary mm-hmm.

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reflective time that it has been, you know, I think in the same way that.

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Maybe there are people that, you know, they go running Yes.

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Or biking or other exercise.

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And that that time is in fact leaky.

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I think you're a runner, right?

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Yes.

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Yes.

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There was a recent episode about your running shoes, right?

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Yes.

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Yes.

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, yes.

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Yeah.

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And you, you may not wanna give up all the alone time, but I would at the same time,

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love to have people come do this with me.

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Mm-hmm.

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, that's beautiful.

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But again, I'm, I, this is one of the interesting things about.

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This project I've been working on and learning from from Josh is,

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I'm not, I'm not really doing it necessarily just to clean up litter.

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I'm doing it cuz I'm actually enjoying my time.

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out there in, in nature.

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Like it really, I have been enjoying it.

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Yeah.

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Is there a way to discover this intrinsic motivation?

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Because I'm trying to think of something I could do.

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Um, actually there are things I enjoy doing.

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It.

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It's, it's has become.

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Easily, um, easy as to switch it, uh, to adopt it as a habit.

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Um, so, and I'm sure that there are other things I could discover.

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So is there a way I could discover before?

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Well, actually, uh, we are recording, um, at the beginning of December, so I

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have almost three or four weeks before I make it . So what should I do with my

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three, four weeks, uh, in discovering.

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intrinsic motivation so I can discover a new habit.

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Yeah.

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Well, I, uh, you know, part of what I will reference back

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to is, is this s spdc method.

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So, so Josh, who has done, uh, quite a number of very big pattern

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changes or habit changes in his life.

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Um, among his many other accomplishments, you know, right now he's working, uh,

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or he is, you know, about a little bit over six or seven months ago, he

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decided to just unplug from the grid.

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He lives in New York City, , and he said, okay, I'm gonna live.

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unplugged from the grid.

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Uh, he has a few solar panels that he hikes.

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I think it's 10 or 11 stories up to his building's roof to put out

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his panels and charge his little battery so that he can still have

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some com computer access and things.

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So he, he's still con, you know, creating solar energy, power

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and, and doing some small amount.

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But, but broadly speaking, he's living off grid in New York City, New York, and, and.

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Things started, and at first you, you might think like,

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oh, that's a big imposition.

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Like that's a really big imposition to just be like, okay, I won't,

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you know, stay plugged in.

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And he, his refrigerator isn't plugged in.

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You know, like all these kind of things that are these modern conveniences.

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And he speaks to that because he came to those.

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Those pattern changes from a place of like sincere, intrinsic, and I'm gonna

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come back and try to answer your question leaky, but because he came to it with this

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intrinsic side of things, it really has been something that he's been enjoying.

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I mean, he's, we've talked numerous times while he's sitting upstairs.

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Keeping an eye on his solar panels and it's, it's cold.

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It's, you know, it's, uh, just over zero Celsius or, you know,

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35, 36 degrees Fahrenheit.

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It's cold outside and he's sitting outside, but he's now a little bit more

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in tune with, he's paying attention to the path of the sun in the sky and

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getting in touch with some of these things that when you have some conveniences,

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you aren't, and he's finding joys.

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In what otherwise someone might perceive as a, as an obligation or an imposition.

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And I think it comes from he did, he came to this idea from a place of

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intrinsic, I wanna do this for me, not because someone told me I need to.

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And thus he's more readily finding the joys in it.

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And so his method, the Spodak method, starts with.

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you know, reflecting back on your own experiences with the environment and

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nature and recalling and enjoying, sort of reliving those moments

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from your, from your own life.

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And then sort of staying in that moment and reflecting and coming up

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with like, okay, so what's something that you could do today that helps

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you refine or find again, that kind of emotional connection with.

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right?

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And so he walks through this, this sort of very neat method of starting with

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a memory and an experience that then, and a set of emotions and feelings

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that then move over into, okay, well how do you, how might you, today it

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doesn't have to be doing good for the planet or like it, there are, you know,

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there are some constraints around it.

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but how might you go reconnect with those and then turn helping

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turn it into a smart goal?

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You know, a smart goal is sort of a specific, measurable, achievable,

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realistic, timely, like sort of like few things that are good kind of

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goals and then, and then going and doing it and checking back in on it.

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And that's how we came, you know, I came up with this like, okay, I want to go

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spend time in this, in this kind of way.

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and now it's turned into my New Year's resolution that it's a

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thing I've really been enjoying.

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And it's not an imposition, even though I'm going and picking up other

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people's trash, I'm really enjoying it.

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I need to really need to think about it because, um, it's home.

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Because I, I, I've got a lot of good, I mean, emotions that

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I, well, I really feel, um, my connection with nature, but it's.

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usually relate.

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It's something that I do outdoor, um, by the sea or in mountains or, mm-hmm.

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, like in, in the forest, but I live in the middle of a city,

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so that's a little bit hard.

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So I need to find something that I enjoy doing.

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Mm-hmm.

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. Well, and I think start with, start with a specific experience,

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a time and a feeling like.

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And if you, if you wanna do this right now, tell me about it.

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Like, start there.

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Hmm.

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You don't have to, we don't have to jump to the, to the water.

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You're gonna go do, but like, let's, let's start with, you know, a time and an

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experience and if I, you know, this is now turning into me interviewing you, . Okay.

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Uh, the first time I actually had a berry.

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In my life because mm-hmm.

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, I was born in Hong Kong and there was, when I, at the time I was born, there was

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no, uh, I mean, at that time we didn't ship, uh, berries from one place, uh, from

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one country to the other end of the world.

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And so the first time I had a strawberry was something that, because

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my, my father, uh, was growing.

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in mm-hmm.

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inside, like, just like, you know, in a, in a small, uh, pot.

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And so he was growing indoor and, uh, so that I was little, but the first time

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I had a strawberry was a revelation.

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And then later, I remember then, uh, um, a few years after that, um, We

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moved to France and the first, I had the same experience, the same thing.

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The first time I had a cherry, it was the first time I had a cherry in my life.

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So I don't know, uh, does it help ? Yeah.

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And, and tell me, tell us and the listeners about your first ex.

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Tell us, tell us in detail like what was it like the first

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time It was something novel.

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It was something that I've never experienced and I felt.

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that was a new world was opening, uh, that was mm-hmm.

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. And, um, and seeing this, you know, I remember seeing this little strawberry

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growing, um, and uh, waiting for it to turn, uh, to turn to turn red.

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And um, I remember I was little and I was trying to hide it, uh, because I didn't

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want my sisters to see it turning red

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So, So you like moved the leaves around?

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Yes.

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So it was a little bit hidden.

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Ok, ok.

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Yeah.

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So it was, um, and it was, it had a, um, it came with a lot of pride

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as well because it was something novel and, uh, the taste was novel

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and it was a lot of pride because it's something that we Oh, I got it.

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Oh.

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It's something that we grew together, uh, with my mm-hmm.

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father and, uh, Because it's something that was very, that did not exist that

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we couldn't have, but we make this, all this effort and, uh, to, to plant

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it and to have it so we can eat it.

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And it was something that, yeah, that I had a lot of joy, you know,

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doing something, saying grow and um, and then feeling privileged to eat

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something I've never tasted before and that not many people enjoy.

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So that's, um, I know what I'm going to do.

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. Okay, good.

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Well, I mean that was, I was, I have an idea, but uh, was just, I was

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there with you, like sort of like.

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Day after day, like watching and waiting for the strawberry to grow, I can,

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I can picture you as a young girl, like pushing the little, like , you

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know, green, turning light pink, strawberry, like hiding it under a leaf.

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Um, and, uh, that anticipation.

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Yes.

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You know, and that sort of, and then, , that final joy of like the

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actual experience and the novelty of like a flavor that's new to you?

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Yes.

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Um, wow.

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Yeah, I mean, you just took me on a great little, like a journey.

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I love that.

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I love that.

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Now, so, you know, I'm gonna invite you at, at your option to think of

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something and, and it seems like maybe you already have, that you can do to

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reconnect with those emotions in the.

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like what's a thing that, that might help you reconnect with that, those feelings?

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Um, obviously it will be to try to grow more food in my apartment, uh mm-hmm.

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and, okay.

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I don't have a lot of space for that and, uh mm-hmm.

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. Um, but I think it's something that will be.

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and it's, it'll be great because, um, instead of going in by Basil,

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I could just have it in my kitchen.

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That's easy.

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And so, mm-hmm.

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, um, I'm not a very good, um, um, plum Care, uh, I don't water

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them very regularly, but it's something I can do and learn.

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. So Uhhuh, , and then I'll get to enjoy all this.

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And it's, it's great to grow your own food, even if it's difficult, uh, uh,

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because, uh, because it brings joy and, uh, it's also something I can

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talk, um, talk about when, um, and then, uh, maybe, you know, make my

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love for growing food a little bit contagious, so other people will do.

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I, I would imagine that, you know, so if we, if we turn this into a thing,

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and I'm gonna create some accountability here with you in a second, leaky , we're

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gonna make this as hard goal for you.

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Um, I would definitely wager that your enjoyment of this will lead to you sharing

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this experience, maybe even sharing the, the, the produce itself, whichever

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things you plan to grow with others.

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And that will bring.

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Some of those warm feelings of community and, and, and you'll be enjoying those

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feelings that you were just sharing of the anticipation watching this thing

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grow, and then that novelty of, of enjoying something that, that you've grown

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yourself and the flavors that it brings.

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Um, . Okay.

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So I, I think this is a, a wonderful thing, , it's something

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that you're not already doing.

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Uh, it's something you're gonna do with your own hands.

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Yes.

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And it will leave the world a little bit better than you found it.

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Mm-hmm.

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, right?

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Yes.

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Like, this will, this will move it in the right direction.

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Um, so, and, and I think you're going to, I anticipate that you're

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gonna find some joy with this.

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Um, actually, so, yeah, actually, I, I, I mean, I, I love how you helped

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me, um, make this decision because it's something I've been thinking about.

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and I've been, I've been looking at, you know, on Instagram, a lot of pages

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of people that grow food in apartments.

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Mm-hmm.

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in Paris, we are very small, like, you know, on the edge of

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the windows and some people do it.

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Mm-hmm.

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, but I've never.

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Made a decision, I'm going to do it myself.

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And then you helped me reconnect with why in the first place I wanted to do it.

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That's, yeah.

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Something that I have kind of forgot why I wanted to, yeah, I was interested

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in this in the first place, so.

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. Well, and, and that's, that's this beauty of now, it's an intrinsic

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thing, not this sort of pressure of, oh, on Instagram I saw these great

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pictures of everyone else's window garden, so I should do that too.

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That's extrinsic.

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Mm-hmm.

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. But now it's this, like, this joy from the inside.

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So, but wait, I, I wanna get to, , you know, the commitment part.

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I do wanna do that real quick.

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Cause I think that's, that's part of a useful thing here.

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Like, let's make it a specific goal.

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Yep.

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You've got your pencil out, . Okay.

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Um, so you're going to plant some plants.

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Mm-hmm.

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. Okay.

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So I think that's pretty specific.

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Uh, measurable.

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It will be able to measure that you planted some plants.

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It seems to me pretty achievable.

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Mm-hmm.

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, um, and it's very realistic.

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Okay, now timely, let's sort of chat through that.

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Do you think, you know, it takes a while for plants to germinate and,

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and that, so maybe we say, you know, it's, right now, it's the beginning

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of December for us as we record this.

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So how about I check in with you at the beginning of January?

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30 days from now to see if you've, if you've done it, cuz

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by then the seeds will, most seed types will have germinated.

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So they'll be like little sprouts just sticking up above the soil.

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Mm-hmm.

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, um, they won't be full plants yet.

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Hmm.

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But does that feel like 30 days from now by then you think you'll have

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planted them and and they'll have had a, a little bit of time in soil?

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Yeah.

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. That's, I actually, we should have had this conversation

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yesterday because yesterday I went to the florist to buy flowers.

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Mm-hmm.

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. And there was a lady who was buying some, uh, basil seeds and, uh, she was uhhuh.

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Um, so I need to, she, she bought them because she's, say, she was saying that,

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you know, it's, I think it's a, it's a good time to j to put them in in soil.

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And then I thought, Hmm, why is she doing it?

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But then I should have bought this, so I need to go back to the florist.

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. Okay.

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There you go.

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That's wonderful.

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Well, so I will plan to connect with you in January and check in

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on this cause I'm very excited to hear your experiences along the way.

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Great.

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Okay.

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Yeah.

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Wow.

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That's , that's conversation style with you sharing your

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New Year's resolution and . Yep.

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And now you got one . That's it.

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But it's one that I think you're gonna really enjoy.

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Yes, yes.

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Yeah.

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And, and I will say this, so we, I, we, you and I have never talked about

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this before, but a few years ago.

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. That was something I did coincidentally, oh.

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Was starting to learn.

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My grandfather was a master gardener and did grew and, and, and bred

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different plants and grafted plants together and did amazing things.

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Mm.

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Um, with his planting knowledge.

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Um, and it was a thing that I had not, I'd learned some of as a child, but.

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A lot.

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And so a few years ago I said, okay, this is a thing I want to go learn how to do.

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And I've now done trying to raise things from seeds for, uh, three.

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This will be my third winter.

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Um, and it's each year it's been a learning process, but it's been

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a lot of fun, like coming and, and touching soil and taking, I mean,

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basil seeds, I'm sure you saw them.

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They're like the tip of a pencil.

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They're so tiny, and yet they turn into these wonderful, amazing plants.

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They're so fun to consume and, and fairly easy to grow.

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Um, that's awesome.

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And so I will, I will also say, um, one of the joys for me along this

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way is I've gone from, first I bought seeds and this last year was the

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first year that I was planting seed.

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From the plants that I had grown, that I'd harvested the seeds.

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Wow.

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And dried them.

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And so this year, again, coming here in the few weeks, I'll be planting up my,

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I'll have all these, you know, uh, racks of things to the chagrin of my wife.

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Um, we've got a room that gets a lot of sun and I've got these, like all these,

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these uh, uh, racks set up for the plants.

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Um, and.

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, uh, I'll be planting my second year of seeds grown from the things I planted.

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That's beautiful.

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Wow.

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I'm really looking forward to it so much.

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I'm really excited for your job.

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Fantastic.

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Wow.

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Yeah.

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Thank you.

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Wonderful.

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Well, thank you.

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This has been great.

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Okay.

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Well, thanks for joining everyone for another carbon sessions.

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Carbon Conversations for every day, with everyone, from everywhere in the world.

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Carbon Almanac

When it comes to the climate, we don’t need more marketing or anxiety. We need established facts and a plan for collective action.

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