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Matt from where the heck is Matt is dancing for you live if you back is current campaign right now:

Link to KickStarter. KickStarter Marathon:

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A never ending story - gender roles

I was in a conversation with a friend and couldn't help but share this:

I do not agree on this: "You will do well to continue with your belief that men don't care, and that women bear burdens of worry about everything. It's sad but true, and a problem that is impossible to solve in my opinion"

Its neither a belief but rather a statistical fact. And while being a fact its not a problem but a fact to live with, or in this case to think about and change habits.
If we stopped brainwashing girls and boys into gender roles while raising them both is possible: for females to let go and for males to understand to worry about things and people. Here are two entertaining hints: 

 and 

It's actually not about you and me but about the money, money...right?

Only moving on and do change can build change. Here is, on the opposite a list of what people say regretting in their life - those who feared change and when it was too late they were able to regret not doing it: Link Or: Link See statement 8 in first link.

I don't know what you are busy with, maybe your German studies, your upcoming jobs? If you enjoy reading this then enjoy. It's topics I can't get enough of. The more I read and understand the more my wish is to make people aware of our limited time on earth. And to get over with these gender stereotypes*. That means as well that I am wishing for men to to understand more or to show and express themselves more and also for women to accept, that they are allowed to be the 'master of their soul'.

However. I do disagree on your statement above.

I hate to see yet another young man raised seeing it as normal to treat females as objects. (tempted to add a couple of examples) That by the way includes as well that I do not like the role males are put into to always be strong, never cry, be the responsible person earning money for a family, being made to fight and be mean and so on and so on. I hate to see yet another girl raised and believing to dress neat for others, be nice to others and over all to do things for others is their destiny. I grew up with equal rights and working parents. Without religion, maybe this helps a lot, too. I learned over time, and that was and still is one of the hardest lessons, that what other people say is not what I need to follow, is not what I have to agree to. Women are hard to understand? Well, maybe because they never got a chance to understand themselves, because they were busy to understand everyone else to treat them nicely.

Its one of the things I learned from male friends: to worry about my own business. To worry about one thing at a time. To want things I want. To go for things I want. And not to ask anyone else but myself if I really worry about it enough to want it and then go for it. While writing this I see rolling eyes from male friends listening to girls telling things they wanted or things they wanted to do, but never do - because they never finish worrying about what others would say about that.

Again: I disagree. Its not rocket science. Its pure willpower. And you writing that "It's sad but true, and a problem that is impossible to solve in my opinion" makes me believe that you have no interest to change that.

I do see the change. Well I see what I was raised with already: men and women in equally qualified for jobs. Men and women both wanting what they want and also being themselves while doing so. And also let others do what they wish to do as long as they are themselves and enjoy doing what they are doing.

PS:
I 'hated'. I do not like using this word.

* Its actually way to profitable as just to accept gender equality, right? Girls toys. Boys toys. Girls colors. Boys colors. Women wear skirts. But men are not allowed to (besides in Scotland of course, but seriously - not in daily life). Lady shavers, men razors. Jaja...the money, money...Why focus on whats really important, if we have gender roles to play along. *irony*

Project Lavender Soap

Ok, now this is one of those days when I wonder about different measures used around the globe. I found a very simple soap making recipe in Becky's video, see here:

Here are the ingredients and half the metric amounts - I like to make a test trial first:

50 ounces olive oil
50us fl oz = 1478.7mL
1478.7 : 2 = 739.4mL

15 ounces destilled water
15us fl oz = 443.60mL
443.6 : 2 =221.8mL

6.3 ounces lye beads
6.3oz = 178.60g
178.6 : 2 = 89.3g

Lets begin. I will take pictures and document the process...*excited*
...Done. I am warm now. :D And the soap forms are covered with boxes (by boxes?) and packed in towels to stay warm for a while:

 Here is my lavender and the rosemary growing in my garden.

 

 Here some cut lavender blossoms and self made lavender wands.

Ingredients and tools necessary: Lye, distilled water, olive oil, a scale, silicon forms, a whole plastic spatula, dried lavender blossoms, glass bowl. Do NOT use any aluminum pieces. It would react with the ingredients.

Perfect. The lye: 89g. The lye put into the water. ATTENTION!!! Easy and slow! This gets damn hot and its dangerous for your breath and your skin!!! Windows, doors open if possible. Keep your face distant from the water and lye mix.

 700ml of olive oil do not equal 700g of olive oil. *nerd*

 Rolling the dried lavender blossoms between your fingers with gentle pressure makes the little petals get loose. They are collected in the yellow bowl. How I measured the smaller amounts. I was just curious. The cups are on the scale just for fun.

 Just to show how much petals there were. I had said "a hand full". Here you see the exact amount.

 The lye+distilled water mix needs to cool down. I was separating the lavender petals in that time. Then it comes together with the oil and then got mixed with the dried lavender leaves until it became sticky. You can see that on top in the blue bowl here. If it leaves traces, or shows this slight stickiness on top, its ready to get filled in the forms. I use silicon forms. In the red bread form I added some whole blossoms on top.

Good night pre state soap. I keep you warm to process. It takes about one day until its hard enough to cut it.

I just watched that and like to share this garden video as well, because I like the prepping of the ground. I dont quite get the paper part, but I will read about it. Enjoy:

Life in Tilburg and my new travel companion

It is spring and my garden is showing first results of the effort I put in it.

Meet my new travel companion:

Memento mori

...