Greener in Colorado

Yes, I'm way overdue on this post. I've been on the road for the last week, driving between Kansas City, Albuquerque, Aspen, and beyond. It's been an incredible trip, and I'm heading home tomorrow...
Check back soon. I'll be writing about my experience in Albuquerque and Aspen, CO next. Ever been in a yurt? I have.

In the meantime, I want to share some great sites that I have found to be helpful and informative:
To eliminate/reduce junkmail:

www.GreenDimes.com
www.catalogchoice.com

Great reusable shopping bags:

www.resuablebags.com

Inspiring messages, products and information:

www.idealbite.com
www.greenfeet.com

One of my favorite blogs that I follow:

http://dannyseo.typepad.com

Send me your favorite sites, and I'll share with others. Come back soon.

Excess packaging?

With LOTS of family in town the last week or so, we've had the occasion to play a few board and card games. We play the standards: Apples to Apples, Set, Phase 10, Blokus and others. Last night I opened my fairly newly purchased copy of Qwirkle. We had played this in Sedona in January with I celebrated a recent birthday. I remembered that it was fun, and required some strategy. It's kind of a combination of Set and Dominoes....

In the very large box, were the playing tiles (all neatly wrapped in one plastic block), and a cloth storage bag. All of the tiles (which are all that is required to play), neatly fit in the cloth bag, leaving the very large box, and some card board packaging as trash. Now I realize that MindWare, the maker of this great game, will sell more copies in the very large box than they would otherwise, but this really makes me think about how much they are wasting in packaging. It's a great game, don't get me wrong. I may even buy another copy for a gift someday (or I might not...), but hopefully we'll soon see reductions in the excess packaging. Why am I picking on Qwirkle instead of thousands/millions of other products and manufacturers? Because the empty, very large box is sitting on my kitchen counter, waiting for the trash/recycling truck to come by tomorrow.

Kudos to the company that makes Bananagrams. It's a great game, with similar components to Scrabble. The small cloth banana shaped pouch that the game is sold in has no extra packaging. You keep all of the tiles in the pouch. It will be my next game purchase for sure. Here's their blurb: "The award winning anagram name that will drive you bananas!" They've won several toy awards, for good reason. For more info on the game, click here.

Daily tip from idealbite.com

I just got home from my first "greendrinks" meeting tonight. It's a social group that focuses on environmental issues. It was a great meeting, and I'll take time to write about it in the next day or 2 (it's late, and I'm beat). In the meantime, I thought I'd share the daily tip from idealbite.com:

Quoth the Raven, "How long does trash last in landfills?"

The Bite
Evermore. Like something out of a creepy poem, even biodegradable items like food can hang around in garbage dumps for years. Trash is packed so tightly that it doesn't always get the necessary light, oxygen, and/or microorganisms it needs to decompose, so truly, we implore: Reduce, reuse, and recycle when you can. Ca-caw!

The Benefits

• A future that's not all midnight-dreary. Researchers have found (perfectly compostable) 25-year-old corncobs and grapes, and (easily recyclable) 50-year-old newspapers that are still readable in landfills. The less waste we toss, the fewer mummified remains will hang around in dumps.

Mona here. If you want to read more (and I hope you do), check out their website at www.idealbite.com. Bite sized ideas for green living.

Enjoy!
.

Supporting ocean friendly seafood?

Having extended family in town is always a reason to celebrate, and share great food. Last night was a perfect example. With 2 generations of nieces and nephews in town, I headed to my sister and brother-in-laws for dinner (with dinner in hand).

Wild Alaskan salmon was on the menu, along with some local produce. As you can see from the picture, we had quite a feast of tomatoes with mozzarella, corn on the cob, steamed green beans, sauteed zucchini, and an incredible salad, topped off with "just picked from my sister's flower garden" edible day-lily flowers (did you know you can eat these? they are a bit sweet...and make anything more beautiful). Although not all of the produce was local, most of it traveled from within Kansas and Missouri. Some of the corn came from within a few miles of where we were. For dessert, fresh peaches with ice cream. (Sorry, no pictures...we were busy oooing and aaaahhhing over the wonderful peaches.)

So....this morning I began to wonder about the salmon (were you wonder about the title of the post yet?)

The salmon was incredible, and purchased at Whole Foods. I must admit I wasn't 100% sure if it was Wild Alaskan or not, but I decided to check out their seafood policy. You can read here about Whole Food's buying practices here. If you want to make sure you're buying seafood that is good for you, and good for our oceans, check out the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch. You can download a pocket guide here, listing "Best Choices" and fish to "Avoid".

Enjoy!

Recycling Books

For quite a while, every time I order a book from Amazon, I think, "gee, I have lots of books that I should get rid of". This comment has landed me at Half Price Books a few times, with a crate full of books. I anxiously await my name to be called over the PA, calling me to the buying counter. If lucky, I'll earn enough to pay for lunch, or admittance to one of my nephew's basketball tournaments.

I've managed to get rid of dozens of books over the years, but lately I keep thinking, I'm just "pushing" these titles into a system where I don't know if anyone will "pull" from. (For those of you familiar with Lean Manufacturing, you can relate).

So...yesterday, I decided to post some books on Amazon. While it took me a few minutes to get into the groove, very quickly I was spending about 60 seconds posting each title. Will it earn me any cash? I didn't know, but I was soon to find out.

Within an hour or 2 of posting about 20 titles, I was getting ready to close my computer, but decided to check my email first. Sure enough, I had an email from Amazon reading: "Sold, Ship now...". Oh my gosh, had I really made my first sale within a few hours? Yes, I had. I was pleased to learn that there were other lower priced books that the buyer didn't choose. Why not? The price was lower, the condition similar...oh well, I decided not to dwell on the psychology of buying. I'll just package the book and get it ready to mail.

The story continues...early this morning I checked email, and....you guessed it. Another email from Amazon reading: "Sold, Ship now..." for another title. Very cool I thought. While my basic instinct said "POST EVERY BOOK YOU OWN", I decided that wasn't a wise choice. At least not today. Maybe tomorrow. We'll see...

So, back to the Lean Manufacturing reference. By posting these books on Amazon, I didn't have to "push" these books out to clutter up the shelves of Half Price Books. The 2 books are now in transit to the people who have decided to "pull" from my inventory. Thanks Stephen in Florida and Mindy in Colorado. Thanks for helping me recycle.

Checking out the local organic markets

Last night I had decided to check out the local, organic farmers markets in the Kansas City area. I'd been to the one in Brookside, but not recently. There is also one on Red Bridge.

It was raining this morning...a perfect morning to sleep in. Instead, I was out the door by 8:15, heading to the KC Organics and Naturals Market located at Minor Park, just East of Holmes on Red Bridge Road (111th Street). It wasn't raining yet on that side of town, but I only stopped for a few minutes, since there were only 5-6 vendors. I bought some great looking zucchini squash.

Next was Brookside. I wanted to get there a bit later, after a few of the stores had opened. I was early, but did browse through The New Dime Store. It's such a unique store! By this time, the rain was coming down, so my trip through the Brookside Farmer's market across the street was fairly quick. I did pick up some beets (I LOVE roasted beets), tomatoes, and some flax seed bread.

For some reason, I was inspired to make my favorite meat loaf recipe, from The New Basics Cookbook. (Market Street Meat Loaf). It's full of veggies, and the recipe calls for both beef and pork (but I use ground turkey in place of the beef, and yogurt in place of the half and half). So, my next stop was Whole Foods to pick up the rest of the ingredients.

The farmer's markets are a treat. It's fun to people-watch, and talk to the vendors/farmers. Don't forget your reusable bag. Check these out.

Organic vs. local

Tonight I'm reading "Building the green economy: success stores from the grass roots." It's an inspiring book, showing how individuals and communities are making a difference.

Many people ask whether it's better to buy organic food, or local food. While the obvious choice is "local organic", that's not always an option. Local is better, if you have to choose.

One chapter contains a conversation with Anuradha Mittal, who is the Founder and Executive Director of the Oakland Institute, a non-profit research and advocacy organization. He states that the US is one country where organic farmers have to pay to get the certified organic label on their produce, while chemical farmers get away scot-free so they can provide so-called cheap food.

This book is an eye-opener. From stories about victories over polluters, big corporations, and government to grass-roots movements by unlikely participants, "Building the green economy" is an inspiration.

Thoughts on Big Green Purse

The book, Big Green Purse by Diane MacEachern provides great resources for anyone who spends money. That's you and me, right? I love the title of her book: Big Green Purse: Use Your Spending Power to Create a Cleaner, Greener World. She states that "women spend eighty-five cents of every dollar in the marketplace". Women have tremendous buying power, and what we do and don't buy sends powerful messages to manufacturers. The Big Green Purse lists countless resources, from researching/buying furniture, clothing, food, cleaning supplies, cars, cosmetics and more!

The format of the book makes it easy, and fun to read, with icons and quick tips indicating "thumbs up" or "thumbs down", along with "ecocheap" and "green at work".

Check out Big Green Purse. She invites us all to make a pledge to shift $1000 of our annual spending on green products. To make your pledge go to www.biggreenpurse.com. I did.

With my major kitchen remodeling project that was just completed (well...almost completed), I used a counter-top product called Richlite, which is made from recycled paper and resin. I also installed a cork floor, and another counter-top made of bamboo. It's a start.

Check this out too!

KC Green Drinks

Tonight I learned that the next KC Green Drinks meeting will be July 17 at Californos in Westport. I'm excited to attend, and meet others who are proactively working toward sustainability and positive environmental issues. I look back at the changes I've made over the last year, and I'm hoping to be more inspired to do greater things.

Today, I talked to several people about Habitat for Humanity's Re-Store. I've been to the new KCK store several times in the last few weeks...mostly to make donations. Now, I'm ready to pick up some crown moulding for the kitchen project (no, it's not over yet).

Recycling bins at school sporting events?

Yesterday was a basketball marathon day at one of our local high schools, Shawnee Mission South. (Rhys played 3 games). I always carry my reusable bottle, usually full of ice tea, but sometimes just water. As I sat and watched 3 hours worth of games, I stopped counting the number of plastic water, sports drinks, soda, or other beverage containers that went in the regular trash cans. I didn't see one recycling container in the gym. I'm not sure how many games were played yesterday, but let me try to estimate how many bottles were trashed. There were 2 courts being played during the 3 games, which meant 4 teams. On average, 7 players per game. 28 x3=84. 84. That's just the number of bottles used by the players. Add a few dozen for the fans, coaches, etc per game. I know there were a lot more than 3 games played yesterday.

At one high school, 2 days worth of games, there could easily have been over a thousand bottles. I think it's time to send an email to the school district to see what could be done to correct this. Better yet, I can call them tomorrow: Shawnee Mission School District Facilities Office (913) 993-6443.

Saving gas

Last week I signed up on Bridging the Gaps site to do "5 Green Things". One of the things is to "Drive Smoothly". I've tried to make a game out of it, by seeing how far I can coast, (without endangering myself or other drivers). Tonight, thanks to a fairly decent sized hill, I was able to go between 2 stop lights without stepping on the accelerator. Yep, I got a few odd looks, but no honks or obscene gestures. I think I've mastered going the last 2-3 blocks to get to my house, without stepping on the gas.

Here's Bridging the Gap's description:

How

Drive as if you have no breaks – that means no sudden stops and starts. Accelerate gently and read the road ahead to avoid unnecessary braking. Write yourself a small note on the steering wheel or dashboard to remind yourself.

Why

This is a free way to reduce your gasoline use and money spent at the pump while reducing the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of your car or truck, which make up one third of all American GHG emissions.

Sign up here. Make your pledge to do 5 Green Things.

Click here to learn about running a car using water, on Hydrogen Car Network.

Reusable bags

I stopped at Whole Foods yesterday. They had a big sign out front that said: "We'll pay you $.10 per bag to turn around and get your reusable shopping bag from your car!" I was proud to say that I already had 3 in my hand. (I purchased 2 of them from reusablebags.com). I love their website, their mission, and the way they conduct business.

Last month I attended a bridal shower of a dear friend's daughter. My goal was to buy something that had NO packaging, and then gift wrap it with material that could all be re-purposed or re-used. It was a no-brainer that I would use a cloth shopping bag as the wrap (I used kitchen twine to tie a bow.) The bride-to-be loved the Heavyweight Hemp/Organic Cotton Grocery Bag.

My favorites are the Reisenthel - Mini Maxi Shopper, Long Handle bags. I have several colors, but my favorite is the polka-dot one. I bought it this summer in Seattle, and wish I had a few more, in different colors, but haven't been able to find them on-line. Has anyone seen them?

For those of you who still use the plastic bags from grocery stores, department stores, take-out restaurants, and a gazillion other places...please recycle your bags. Wal-mart and Whole Foods both have a great bag recycling program.

Those little plastic gift cards...

A few days ago, I wrote about the plastic "gift cards" you get when you return something to a retail store, without a receipt. At dinner that night, I discussed this with a few friends. We talked about all of the promo mail we get, which includes the plastic "credit cards".

Today, when I opened my mail, I had 3 cards (advertising credit cards, and, oh my goodness, AARP.) When I examined them closely, I found out they weren't plastic (at least these 3 weren't). They were paper (2 with a glossy coating, which was easily torn). That's the good news for the day!

Oh yeah, more good news. I had to return something to Westlake Hardware (without a receipt). They gave me a register receipt, with my credit indicated on the receipt. Although the chances of me losing this is greater than the plastic gift card, I was still thrilled to get it! Kudos to Westlake Hardware!

Recycling my violin?

For several years, I've thought about selling my violin (Gustav August Ficker). It's the same one I've had since mom bought it for me when I was in the 7th grade. Within the last few years, Ken at Beckman Violins did some minor repare work on it. At the time, he said if I ever wanted to sell it, to let him know.

I have mixed feelings about selling, but it needs a good home, with someone who will play it with passion. I took it down to Beckman's today, and left it (Ken is on vacation until Thursday). I'll be anxious to hear back from him, to see if he's still interested in buying.