Tree-Hugging Hippie

I am a registered republican. There . . . I said it. I hope you appreciate how scary it can be to admit that while living in the Twin Cities. I will now have to fear for my life. Two things you can't be in the Twin Cities: A Republican and a Blackhawks fan. I am currently 0-2.

Troy and I spent the Christmas holiday in Chicago with my family. It was there that I realized that Minnesota has really sunk it's teeth into me and as I would have conversations with my family, I was becoming painfully aware that I have turned into a tree-hugging hippie. Here are a few highlights which led me to this conclusion and caused my parents to exchange glances where they said with their eyes, "Our daughter is a tree-hugging hippie."

1. Philanthropist Footwear. I got a new pair of Toms from my sister-in-law for Christmas. They are awesome and I love them. In case you haven't heard of Toms, they are a company that donates a pair of shoes in a third world country to a child who doesn't have shoes whenever you purchase a pair of shoes. (Click here to learn more about the company.) Anyway, I put on my brand new Toms the same day that my sister and her boyfriend came home and Laura hadn't even sat down before she started making fun of my shoes. When I tried to explain the company, I just sounded like, well . . . a tree-hugging hippie.

2. Eastern Remedies. My dad was starting to feel like he was catching a cold. Obviously I am going to give a shout-out to one of my favorite homeopathic remedies: the Neti Pot! I was able to successfully convert my dad to this practice so his response was that he was going to use his Neti Pot. However, Troy made a comment about how I should be a spokesperson for the Neti Pot and I am pretty sure the rest of the family snickered at me. Why? Because I am a tree-hugging hippie.

3. Gerber, What?! I was talking to my mom about wanting to make my own baby food and use cloth diapers when the time comes for Troy and I to procreate. (No, it's not anytime soon.) I think my mom actually thinks this is cool although I did have to explain to her that cloth diapers are different from when I was a kid, as she was skeptical at first. Actually she this was a positive interaction, but it still makes me a little bit of a tree-hugging hippie.

4. The Three R's. Tonight we had dinner with some friends. We got on the topic of recycling (perfectly natural, right?) and our friend told us that after is wife took out the recycling he couldn't find a new bag and threw three empty cans of pop away. I definitely couldn't let it go and I was joking, but it still made me look like a tree-hugging hippie . . . and a little bit of a jerk for sticking my nose into their garbage business. Sorry, Peter.

Those are the big ones, but that combined with the fact that I am a teacher (unions), I love the Farmers Market (even though I can't get up early enough on a Saturday to go), and I want a big yard to have a huge garden and a compost pile . . . . I am basically one pair of Chacos away from becoming a full-fledged democrat. No offense to my liberal friends out there.

Anyway, this new realization also brought forth a moment of reflection. It is okay for me to be a tree-hugging hippie. It is even okay to be a Republication tree-hugging hippie, regardless of what my party may believe. So, I have decided to keep on being myself and I get any more flack about it,I'll show you . . . I'll vote for Michele Bachmann.

Go ahead . . . . test me . . . . .