The Sunday Post

On Kids, Comments and Christmas

Yeah, it's a lazy post day, but since it's Sunday, I figure I can get away with it. Things are crazy around here, as I'm sure they are at your house too. So I'm taking a change-a-day break today and instead will just tell you what's going on here.

The kids are both sick. Ethan appears to have inhaled a giant, green mucous monster that continually makes escape attempts from his left nostril. He still can't "blow" so I'm wiping his nose about every three minutes. If I don't get there in time.... well, you just don't want to know.

Daphne has a slightly more serious condition: The Croup. For those of you who aren't familiar with the malady, it's basically a bad cold that makes your child wheeze like a dog chew toy. It is VERY SCARY and she is on steroids and nebulizer treatments. Fortunately, she is responding very well to treatment and should be fine in another day or two.

My heart goes out to any parent who has a child with asthma or other respiratory illness. Watching your child gasp for air while you helplessly rock her is an awful feeling.

As for comments, wow! You guys are rocking my world! But now I feel bad because I haven't been able to answer all of them. Anyhow, so you don't think I'm ignoring all of you....

To Wendy -- thanks so much for reading! I can't believe you went all the way back to the beginning and read everything! I appreciate your comments and wish you luck in your new blog.... please leave a comment here with the link so I can add it to my blogroll :-)

To Green Bean -- You have some of the best Green Mom ideas on the planet -- thanks for sharing them! :-)

To Leslie -- Glad you like my titles :-) Oftentimes, that's the part that gets the most revisions! I am a FREAK for puns (among other things ;-) and more than once I have selected my daily change based on how funny I think the heading will be.

To Mr. G. -- I asked hubby about the dampers (he's a construction project manager) and he said they usually put dampers on the floors downstairs and in the ceilings upstairs due to framing issues. There's just more "free space" in the basement/crawlspace and attic than there is between the two floors. He actually went on with like a thousand reasons about cold air returns, circulation, ambient air, cost-effectiveness, insulation etc., but I zoned out after I heard the first part. Hope this answers your question!

I think that hits most of the comments, if I failed to answer one of yours, I'm sorry :-( . I'm just not very organized these days.

Other goings-on at the house include the six batches of fudge I've made for teachers and neighbors and the four I have yet to make. I won't mention the two "test batches" that I've eaten and the resulting zit outbreak I'm currently experiencing. Aaaahhhh, the holidays.

Hope you're all having a relaxing Sunday. Apparently, I am :-)

Day 147 - Ty One On

Recycling Tyvek Envelopes

You all know I work from home because I often shamelessly plug my sister's renaissance garb store - The Very Merry Seamstress (thank goodness I didn't do that today, right?). Anyhow, when our lovely customers order a design that requires a brocade, satin or other fancy-shmancy fabric, I generally order just a yard or two online. There are a number of different vendors I use and several of them ship their fabrics in those Tyvek US Post envelopes.

They're one of many free supplies offered at the post office and they are lighter than a box, which reduces the postage requried to ship them. They take up less room to store and can be easily squished to fit in a standard mailbox. This is why so many vendors prefer to use the plastic packages, as opposed to boxes. Personally, I use the boxes because they are much more easily recycled than the Tyvek envelopes. However, I do occasionally recieve materials shipped in them.

These envelopes (and any other Tyvek items) are made of #2 plastic and *may* be accepted in your regular recycling bins. However, check with your local municipal waste management facility before dumping them in there because you never know what their sorting machinery can handle. My county does not accept them in the blue bins, but fortunately for all of us, DuPont has its own Tyvek recycling program. I learned about it from Beth at Fake Plastic Fish, who is a veritable encyclopedia of plastic knowledge!

According to DuPont's website, here's how I can recycle them (in quantities less than 25):

Turn any Tyvek® envelope inside out, so the unprinted white surface shows on the outside. Stuff the inside-out Tyvek® envelope with other used Tyvek® envelopes for recycling.
Address and mail the envelope to:

Tyvek® Recycle

Attn. Shirley Cimburke

2400 Elliham Avenue #A

Richmond, VA 23237

Note the address there. Yeah, I could actually drop these off the next time I'm over on that side of town. How cool is that?

Yes, I know, it would be much cooler if I insisted that all my vendors package their items in recyclable cardboard, rather than down-cyclable plastic, but honestly, I forget to do it most of the time. Senility is setting in fast, my friends.

Savings:

During my busy season (March - October), I recieve approximately one envelope per week. During my off season, I'd say it's one envelope per month. That gives me a total of 38 envelopes per year. Envelopes that previously would have been trash, will now at least become a fleece sweater or fake wood decking or something. Perfection? No. Improvement? Yes.

Difficulty Level: 1 out of 5

Saving the envelopes is no problem. They are small and are easily stored - even in my tiny sewing room. Even sending them back won't be difficult. As I said, I can either drop them off the next time I find myself in the area, or just pop them in the mail. Of course, if DuPont REALLY wanted to be a Good Company, they'd accept them postage due. Hmmmm. Maybe I'll mention that when I drop them off!

Supplemental Post - Shameful Update

Seriously? You Read My Blog? Again?!?!?!

You'd think someone who bitched about Bush's fecklessnes as passionately as I did would go the extra mile and see if there wasn't something we could all do about it. Fortunately for me, I have somehow managed to surround myself with friends who are much more level-headed and, obviously, much more informed about environmental issues.

BIG THANKS to Green Bean and Mr. G for alerting me to the fact that there is an online global petition, organized by Avaaz, a community of global citizens who take action on the major issues facing the world today.

Here's a blurb from their website:

Climate negotiations in Bali are in crisis. Things were looking good till now: near-consensus on a delicate deal, including 2020 targets for rich countries, in return for which China and the developing world would do their part over time. IPCC scientists have said such targets are needed to prevent catastrophe. But Japan, the US and Canada are banding together to wreck the deal, and the rest of the world is starting to waver...

We can’t let three stubborn governments throw away the planet's future. We have until the end of Friday to do everything we can. Please sign our emergency global petition -- we'll deliver it through stunts at the summit, a full-page ad in the Jakarta Post in Asia, and directly to country delegates to stiffen their nerve against any bad compromise. Add your name to the campaign now!

We call urgently for the US, Canada and Japan to stop blocking serious 2020 targets for emissions reductions, and for the rest of the world to refuse to accept anything less.

To sign the Avaaz worldwide petition, go here.

Thanks Green Bean and Mr. G!

Supplemental Post - Shameful

Seriously? We Elected This Guy? Twice?!?!?!

The good news is, no -- we didn't actually "elect" him twice. He bought his way in on the first one. But the bad news is, he's still there -- and will be for another year. Right at a time when we need someone who actually gives a rat's ass about the environment.

Bush refuses to fucking commit to any solid numbers when it comes to reducing emissions. He might as well get a zamboni and start running over polar bears and penguins now.

If you're wondering what I'm pissed off about, read this article from CNN about how European nations will boycott U.S.-led climate talks next month unless Washington accepts a range of numbers for negotiating deep reductions of global-warming emissions.

Day 146 - Taking My Measurements

Tracking My Progress on The 90% Reduction Challenge

A few months back, I wrote about the Riot for Austerity - a challenge to reduce my emissions to 90% of what the Average American uses, within one year. Now, three months into it, I'm going to post my results for the whole world to see. Some of the numbers surprised me and a few are downright shameful. Of course, posting these measurements is not as ego-pounding as revealing my physical measurements, so feel free to point and laugh. I won't be offended. I rarely never am.

I'm going to assume that most of you reading this blog are like me and are just too lazy to click the link above, so here's a recap:

The 90% figure is borrowed from George Monbiot's plan to avoid reaching a tipping point, beyond which temperature rise will run out of control and major ecosystems will collapse. In Monbiot's book, "Heat: How to Stop the Planet from Burning" he has presents his views on how to avert this disaster. To avoid hitting the "critical threshold", he says, the world’s total carbon emissions must be reduced to 60 percent below current levels by 2030—a target that would require the developed world (that's you and me, friend) to reduce emissions by 90 percent, in order to compensate for growth in China, India and other developing countries.

In the Challenge there are seven basic categories for reduction: Gasoline; Electricity; Heating and Cooking Energy; Garbage; Water; Consumer Goods; and Food. There are a lot of rules on how to calculate your savings, so that we all measure our success with the same yardstick. You can check out all the rules, averages and factoids here.

So how do I measure up so far? See for yourself...


Gasoline:

The average American uses 500 gallons of gasoline per year. I didn't count hubby in on this one, since he has a company vehicle and I don't have access to his information. Instead, I just counted me, the kids and the minivan. So our monthly average American allowance would be 125 gallons.
Over the past three months, we averaged 20 gallons per week, or 86.6 gallons per month. For gasoline consumption, we are at 69% of what the average American uses. :-( Not the worst, but definitely needs improvement! Again, we don't have access to public transportation where I live but I still need to find ways to reduce this.


Electricity

The average American household uses 900 kWh per month.

Our usage last month was 490 kWh, so for electric consumption we are at 54% of what the average American uses. BUT! Since we utilize wind power, we get a 4-to-1 payback on our usage!

This little bonus means that our usage would actually calculate out at 122.5. That knocks us down to 13.6%! WOO HOO! Of course, the a/c went off that month, but to quote Edna Moles "I never look back darling, it distracts from the now".


Heating and Cooking Energy

The average American household uses 1000 therms per year, 83.3 therms per month.

Our usage last month was 47.15 therms, which puts us at 56% below average. This is scary since October wasn't even really that cold. This is why I'm trying so hard to keep our thermostat low, shut dampers, find leaks, etc.!


Garbage

The average American generates 4.5 pounds of garbage per day. We have four people in our household, so the average for us would be 126 pounds per week.

We are averaging roughly 60 pounds per week - 47% of the average American's trash output. Can definitely be improved upon. I just need to be more careful about the products I buy.


Water

The average American uses 100 gallons of water per person, per day. With four people in the house, that puts our monthly average at 12,000 gallons.

Our average water usage over the past two months was 3.5 ccf per month. Multiply 3.5 by 748 and you get 2,618 gallons per month. This puts us at 21.8% of the average American! I'm actually pleasantly surprised here! I thought we would be MUCH higher, but I guess all my little changes are starting to add up! :-)


Consumer Goods

The average American household spends $10,000 per year on consumer goods. So our monthly allowance would be $833.33.

I took the four months of July - October (since I have all the records, including credit card statements), and our average monthly consumer goods spending was $697.50. This puts us at nearly 84% of the average American. Not good. This definitely needs to be lowered! I can't imagine what my percentage will be after the holidays. Oy!


Food

This one is nearly impossible, even for a nerd like me, to quantify. The Riot says we should be at 70% locally grown, 25% dry bulk goods and 5% all else. Just looking in my pantry, I'd guess that my averages are more like 10 / 25/ 65, respectively. Pathetic.

I'm hoping to really improve on this next spring. I'd like to have a small veggie garden in the side yard and hope to nut up and go downtown to the farmer's market. Of course, it's always easier to eat locally during the summer months, so to make this a year-round endeavor, I'll have to do a TON of canning and freezing.


Summary

Well, I didn't reach 90% in any category, but then again, I didn't really expect to. Honestly, I was pleased just to see that all of my numbers were less than the average American!

Taking the time to look at my numbers has inspired to work harder towards achieving the 90% goal. It showed me that the cumulative effect of my small changes can actually have a pretty big impact. I am hoping that my next update will show even more improvement!

Day 145 - Try a Little Damper, Mate

Closing the Dampers in Rarely-Used Rooms

We've been experiencing some kooky weather patterns here in the Richmond area recently. Last Wednesday it snowed and yesterday it reached 78 degrees. I'm alternating between long johns and tank tops while I wonder if winter is ever truly going to arrive. I am assuming that it will hit soon and so I have been preparing for it by studying our heating system, insulation and general air-tightness, looking for inefficiencies and opportunities for improvement.

One improvement I have made recently was to close several dampers in the house, in an effort to even out the heat distribution. We all learned in middle school science class that heat rises, so it's no surprise to find that, in the winter, our upstairs gets significantly warmer than our downstairs. Unfortunately, we do not have a dual thermostat system, so the furnace stays on until the downstairs thermostat reads 55 degrees - while the upstairs rapidly approaches the melting point of tungsten.

Last weekend I went through the upstairs and closed two vents in the master bedroom and one vent in the master closet. I prefer to sleep in a pretty cold room, loaded up with lots of blankets anyhow. I did leave the vent in the master bath open, just to take the chill out the air during the post-shower dampness, but I'm thinking I'll try closing it, since the heat from the shower really ought to be capable of warming up the not-so-palacious 5'x5' room.

I also closed the vent in my sewing room since 1. It's my slow season and I'm only sewing about twice a week now and 2. The combination of the lights, the machines and me moving around up there always makes the room feel too hot anyhow.

I ended up closing the damper in the kids' bath because they are now only getting a bath two nights a week and I just climb up on the vanity and open it up for bath time, then close it when they're done.

Ethan's room got dampered halfway down, as he is a lot like Mommy in that he sweats like a pig at night. Daphne, however, got to keep her damper open all the way, because it doesn't seem to work very well anyhow (I checked the duct and it looks fine) and any heat that gets through is welcomed.

The guest room already had its vent closed, but I double-checked it anyhow, because I'm OCD like that.

The final step of this process is to instill in hubby and the kids the concept of closing their room doors when they leave. This will take much longer than it took to close the damn dampers, but will help to ensure the warm air from downstairs doesn't just waft up to those rooms.


Savings:

By closing the upstairs dampers, I will be concentrating the furnace's efforts on the area that needs it most: the downstairs. After all, this is where we spend the majority of our waking time. Once we're upstairs and in bed, it doesn't much matter how cold it gets.

I don't know if I can quantify this, but I will definitely be tracking my gas bill to see if all my little changes add up to big savings compared to last year. I will let you know how the numbers shake out.


Difficulty Level: 3 out of 5

Ugh. We have cathedral ceilings in the master bedroom, so I did have to drag the 12' ladder up from the garage to close our dampers. Also, it is kind of a pain to have to open and close the kids' bath damper twice a week -- especially with my knees hurting -- but I think it's worth the time.

Day 144 - A Little Dab'll Do Ya

Using Less Goop

Big advance apology here for the short post today. I am dog tired. It is 8:48 Monday night and I can barely keep my eyes open. I have been eating like crap ('tis the season, right?) and my jogging career seems to be ending as quickly as it started, due to some serious pain and swelling in my knees. I haven't finished my holiday shopping, the Christmas Cards have yet to be signed and I'm looking at an unpacked box of decorations. It doesn't help that it was 75 out today -- not exactly a big Christmas motivator. Anyhow, if I'm totally unreadable it's only because my eyes are crossed and my head keeps flopping onto the keyboard. Now back to your regularly scheduled blog....

The idea here is simple: use less stuff. It is the basic tenet that drives The Compact and sustainable living in general. However, I'm actually narrowing the scope a bit for this post. I'm talking things like detergents, cleaning supplies, soaps, toothpaste -- you know, "goopy" things.

I've started to push the envelope and see how little goop I can get away with -- in my dishwasher or laundry machine, on my toothbrush or hair, etc. -- and still get the same results. I've found that a lot of these products do a damn fine job, using only 75% or less of whatever the instructions tell me to use.

So the next time you're squeezing something goopy out of a bottle or tube, squeeze a little less. This will stretch the life of the product and the dollar you spent to get it. Best of all, it will lessen the environmental impact of whatever you're using.

::YAWN::


Savings:

Could be calculated, but I'm too sleepy to do so. Let's call it at 25% of all my goopy products.


Difficulty Level: 1 out of 5

Using less is easy, just another habit to change. Now if only I could as easily change my newfound fudge-eating habit. Sugar overload - it'll suck the life right out of ya.

Day 143 - Paraben There, Done That

Ditching All of the Hazardous Children's Personal Care Products

I know you've heard me go on and on about the nasty carcinogenic petro-chemicals in makeup, shampoo, nail polish, kids' babywash and the like, but get ready to hear it again. This week, the folks over at Today's Mama will be featuring my little ol' blog and I wanted to be sure that any of the moms that surf over to my site are made aware of the possible chemical dangers lurking in their kids' bath and body products. (Those of you who are regular readers may be excused, but don't forget, there'll be a quiz on Thursday.)

Many personal care products marketed for infants and toddlers contain a myriad of chemicals that have been proven to carry certain health risks. In fact, some chemicals still allowed in US products have actually been banned in other countries, due to their toxic nature. These chemicals are easily absorbed into the blood stream through our relatively porous skin and new research shows that they spend a lifetime accumulating in our bodies. Scary? Yes. Especially when you consider that we're rubbing this crap all over our little kiddos on a near daily basis. But the good news is - you do have lots of options available and, fortunately, you don't need to be a chemist to find some safe alternatives.

A very simple way to determine the toxicity of the products you're using on your little ones is to surf on over to Skin Deep, a database of personal hygiene products compiled by the Environmental Working Group. There you can simply type in the product name and get a hazard rating, ingredient list and description of possible health concerns related to the item. They even have a great Parent's Buying Guide that will help you quickly find safe alternatives for your children's personal hygiene products.

So, if you're a mom who stumbled on my site and this is the only post of mine you ever read, please, please - take a moment to look up the products you are using on your child and make sure they are the safest ones available. It only takes a moment or two of your time to check them out and the benefits of doing so are great.

Just last night I found a nasty product that I will be ditching in favor of a kinder, more gentler alternative. The kids' bath upstairs had a bottle of Kandoo Foaming Hand Wash which gets a hazard rating of 6 out of 10 on Skin Deep's Database. In fact, according to the site, 90% of liquid hand soaps have fewer health concerns than this soap! Freakin' YIKES!


Savings:

I can't really quantify the environmental savings here, other than to say that if it's not safe to put on my kids' skin, then it's probably not a very good idea to put those chemicals into our lakes and streams either. And we all know that the sewage treatment facilities simply cannot remove all those chemicals that flow down our drains.


Difficulty Level: 1 out of 5

The Skin Deep site makes checking out your products a simple task and a lot of the alternatives are readily available at your local grocery or drug store. But be forewarned - you may have to wander over into the weird crunchy granola health-nut aisles in your local Krogers to find some of them!


**Special thanks to Beth Terry over at Fake Plastic Fish for bringing the awesome Skin Deep database to my attention! Hope you're enjoying your retreat!

Day 142 - Plugging Up The Holes

Shutting the Door on Unsolicited Flyers

Our mailbox continues to get more than its fair share of unsolicited junk mail, despite all my efforts to stop it from coming. However, there is another problem I have with our mailbox which is the little cubby hole that lies beneath the box itself.

You see, I live in a subdivsion that requires my mailbox be provided by the community association. The association, in their infinite wisdom, felt that a cubby hole beneath the box would be a great way for neighbors to keep in touch, or for the HOA to send out postage-free notices. And if that were how it really worked, I wouldn't have a problem with it. But that isn't how it works.

Instead, it is stuffed on a bi-weekly basis with flyers from damn near every local company that cannot afford "real advertising". The result is an average of 16 pieces of paper advertising companies that I have no desire to buy from. Most of them are real estate agents, painters and cleaning services that I either don't need, can't afford, or just don't care enough to utilize their services.

Well, it is a problem no more. I just went out and filled it with a couple of 2x4 scraps hubby had laying around in the garage and Voila! Advertising hole plugged, flyers avoided, HOA-approved mail station still in compliance.


Savings:

Sixteen sheets of paper per week, 64 sheets per month, 832 sheets per year. If my whole subdivision did this, we would be saving well over two MILLION sheets of paper per year. That's a lot of trees. Two-hundred seventy six, to be exact.


Difficulty Level: 1 out 5

I put this one off for a long time because I thought it would be difficult. I imagined having to measure and cut a piece of plywood and then nail it over the opening. Then paint the wood to match the HOA-approved color scheme. But now that I'm jogging outside, I've noticed a few other like-minded folks had plugged up their cubbies with 2x4 scraps. Sometimes, it pays to think outside the box. Or, in this case, inside the box.

Day 141 - The Paper Chase

Buying Recycled Copy Paper

I don't go through a ton of copy paper at home. The only items I print out are shipping labels, VMS orders, mapquest directions and my grocery list form that I made in excel which has rows of categorical headers in the same order as they are found in the aisles at Kroger's. Yeah, that's an actual image of it right there - I like to take my geekness to the next level.

Jealous much?

Anyhow, I may not use a lot of paper, but from now on I'm going to make sure that anything I do print out, is printed on recycled paper. Every office supply store these days carries a wide selection of enviro-friendly paper options. Staples offers three different products including Earth Choice, which is FSC Certified, as well as a generic 30% Recycled Content and a 100% Recycled Content paper. The generic recycled paper also has the advantage of being processed without any chlorine or chlorine compounds. Double Bonus!

So from henceforth, rather than ask hubby to grab a ream of any old paper on his way home, I'll be trundling off to Staples myself to buy 100% Recycled Copy Paper.

Savings:

I'm really raising the bar here, from 0% recycled to 100% recycled. It costs a bit more ($6.49 per ream compared with $4.49 for no recycled content), but it's worth it to me. Now if I could convince hubby to make the switch at his office -- that would really be something!

Difficulty Level: 1 out of 5

Not much extra work, considering I only buy a ream every couple of months. The extra $2.00 hurts, but only because it forces me to listen to hubby's old "going green costs a lot of green" argument.

Day 140 - Let the Sun Shine In

Opening the Curtains to Take Advantage of Solar Heat

OK, I'll admit it. Even this weathered (or "wintered") Upstate New York-er can finally say: It's friggin' cold here. And it is. So cold it even snowed on Wednesday and I violated my compact to buy some long-johns to wear while jogging. With the cold weather settling in, and the thermostat staying low, I'm starting to realize just how much heat is generated when the sun comes shining through our front windows.

Our house, in addition to being poorly designed, is also poorly positioned to take advantage of the sun's warming rays. I suppose in a mostly-too-hot climate like Virginia, it's actually a good thing. But right now - With the cold and all? It's really pissing me off.

The only rooms in our house with southern exposure are the kids' playroom downstairs and the master bedroom upstairs. There are absolutely NO WINDOWS on either the east or west sides, so all of the other rooms, in addition to remaining in a state of total cave darkness, don't get any of that free solar heat.

But to make the most of what I do have, I'm giving the playroom and the master bedroom the ol' open and shut treatment these days. When the sun is shining I make sure to pull back the curtains in those rooms to let all that glowing, golden sunshine warm up my rooms for free.

Do I worry that the neighbors will peek in? Not really. It's way too chilly to be walking around naked anyhow. The best they can hope for is to catch me picking my nose or something. Besides, if they're so bored that the highlight of their day is to spy on the freaky eco-chick and her two kids, then who am I to deny them their entertainment?


Savings:

I don't have an actual number to put here. Which, of course, bothers the obsessive Mathlete in me. However, I can tell you that the kids and I are spending a lot more time sitting on the floor in the playroom than we are hanging out on the couch in the living room! The end result is that the thought of cheating and turning up the thermostat doesn't cross my mind nearly as often.


Difficulty Level: 1 out of 5

It takes all of one minute to pull back the curtains. I don't have fancy tiebacks or anything, so I just tie them in a knot (yeah, very Martha Stewart of me, right?). I've never been known for my interior design skills and I'm sure it looks just as bad from the outside as it does inside, but whatever. The only really big downer is that nearly every day I have to see exactly how filthy my windows are.

Supplemental Post - Global Warming Argument

Here's a great video clip that lays out the argument for working towards a goal of sustainability to avoid the consequences of global warming -- even if you don't think it exists. It's long for a YouTube video (10 minutes) but it's fun and interesting. It's like watching Alton Brown on Good Eats (my favorite cooking show, of course) :-)

Day 139 - If It's So Good, Why Is It Leftover?

Replating Food When in a Metro Area

Today's post is about a really cool movement underway in major metropolitan areas. It is called replating and it's a wonderfully simple way to reduce waste while helping to feed the hungry.

When in an urban setting, simply place your unwanted leftovers (in a doggie bag of some sort) on top of the nearest trash can so they don't go to waste. The homeless and indigent can more easily access the food this way and it reduces the amount of organic waste that ends up in our landfills. It is truly a win-win situation. Here is the DL and some FAQ's from Replate's website:

We started this project because we noticed that people in West Coast cities and beyond were leaving their leftovers on top of (or next to) garbage cans when they couldn't find someone to give them to. We thought this behavior was worth talking about, so we gave it a name. Now that it has a name, there's been a lot of good conversation. Here are the issues that keep coming up:

Won't the food go bad and make people sick? People are eating food out of the trash. They are digging into public trash cans, pulling out old, dirty food, and eating it. Surely food that's on top of the trash, and not mixed in with the muck, is less likely to make a person ill. Surely food that's in plain sight and easily accessible will be picked up sooner (and thus in a fresher state) than food that's hidden in the trash.

The idea of food left outdoors feels messy. Some have worried that food will rot or that rats will get to it before hungry people do. This is a legitimate concern in small towns or sparsely populated areas, but certainly not in a town like San Francisco where, at any given moment, there are many people without enough to eat.

Why not just eat your own leftovers? Of course. Many of us do. But sometimes you just don't, for any number of reasons. Rather than toss 'em out, or go traipsing through the city looking for a hungry person, maybe the next best thing is to replate them.

Incompatible trash cans. Apparently, New York City trash cans don't have hoods or ledges, so there's no horizontal surface on which to replate. This isn't as big a problem as some have suggested. If you want to give someone the food you're not going to eat, simply put it next to the trash can, or on a newspaper dispenser.

Evil people. There's a strange paranoia in the conversation about evil people poisoning the food. Sure, it could happen. But you could also get pushed in front of the subway train. Or someone could put razor blades in your Halloween candy. People could betray your trust in any number of ways, but if you ride the subway, or eat Halloween candy, you know that the fear far outweighs the actual risk.

The City should officially get involved. Some have suggested formalizing a leftovers drop-off point like a food bank, free dining room, or some city-sponsored receptacle. We think that's a great idea. Make it happen.

If replating your leftovers counts as activism, then the bar for activism is set way too low. Maybe that's true, but though the first steps of activism (however you define it) are small ones, they form the foundation for the giant leaps to come. And replate is just the beginning of a conversation that we hope will inspire greater action. And don't forget that this is an open-source movement. It's yours as much as anybody's, and you can build on it however you want. So if you don't think it's activism yet. And if you want to make replate bigger and badder and more hardcore, we've got a hunch you'll get all the support you'll need.

As you all know, I'm a big, fat chicken when it comes to going downtown here in Richmond, but it I do occasionally find myself in a metro area and I'm sure you do too. So the next time I eat out in a city and can't finish my food, I'll be getting a doggy-bag to replate. Hopefully, by posting about the idea, I will also inspire others, who may dine out more than I, to do the same.

Savings:

Hmmmm, three times a year? So, three plates of food. But how many of you will do it? And how many people will you tell? If nothing else, it's an interesting topic, bring it up at your next cocktail party and we'll get this idea going, k?


Difficulty Level: 1 out of 5

Leave doggy bag on trash can so someone else can enjoy your leftover rigatoni. Besides, you know it won't taste the same once you get it home and nuke it.

Day 138 - Takin' It to the Streets

Exercising Outdoors Instead of On A Machine

Let me start by saying I am not an athletic person. Never have been. My high school athletic career consisted of color guard, winterguard and cheerleading. And I could generally be found in the girls' bathroom smoking cigarettes before and after all of those practices. Oh, I was also on the girls' softball team for a season, but only so I could ride on the same bus with the boys' baseball team.

College didn't involve a lot of sports time either, unless Sambuca shot-drinking was a sport. Which I'm pretty sure it wasn't. During my workin' twenties I was actually at my most athletic -- I joined a bowling league for a few years. Beer, cigarettes and a 140 average. Not exactly Olympic material. Not even Special Olympic material.

But now, at the ripe old age of 35, I've decided it's finally time to get in shape. The metabolism has slowed down, the weight has gone up, and although I quit smoking, I still get winded chasing the kids around. And they're only going to get faster.

I do belong to a local gym, so I could just go hop on some electronic machine in a climate-controlled facility. But I'm not going to waste the energy required for a treadmill when I can get the same results without the electro-sucking devices. Instead, my friend (yes, I have one) and I have started running. Outside. On trails. Like nature intended. If, in fact, nature intended exercise at all. Which I'm not so sure it did.


Savings:

Assuming I run for half an hour, that's .75 kWh. My goal is to run every day, so that would be 22.5 kWh per month, 270 kWh per year. That is, if I don't fall off the trail and break my leg - a distinct possibility.


Difficulty Level: 3 out of 5

Let's start with the fact that I don't really like exercising in the first place. Add to that the cold, the wind and the uneven trails and you've got a recipe for one cranky, out-of-breath, muscle-achin' runner. But misery loves company and I've got a partner, so I guess I'll keep on keepin' on.

Day 137 - Not the Sharpest Tool In the Shed

Sharpening My Scissors, Instead of Buying New Ones

For those of you who don't know, I work from home, sewing renaissance garb for my sister's online store, The Very Merry Seamstress (shameless commerce plug - feel free to violate your compact and go buy stuff now, please). Anyhow, my busy season for VMS runs from March through October - the prime season for faires, weddings and Halloween parties.

During my slow months, I like to go through all my equipment and make sure I have everything I need and that it's all in good repair. I usually end up buying new scissors at this time, because worn, dull scissors are a seamstress's worst enemy. It's like an accountant having an adding machine with no "7" - not only will it slow you down, but odds are, it'll also make you f' a few things up. And since they're a relatively inexpensive business expense, it's always seemed easier to just buy new.

This year, however, I will be taking my shears over to Hancock Fabric and dropping them off for the guy who comes in and sharpens the scissors. He stops by once a month and sets up shop right in the middle of the store, where he spends the entire day honing and filing cutting tools for the old, the cheap, and the eco-friendly. Oh look -- I fall into all three categories now! :-)

Savings:

One pair of scissors and the packaging and shipping associated with buying new. Oh, and $12 - the cost difference between buying and sharpening.

Difficulty Level: 1 out of 5

I'll have to call the store to find out what day Mr. Sharpie will be there but that's the only additional step required. All in all, another very easy change to make.

Day 136 - Rakin' It In

Trading In the Leafblower for a Rake

I've talked about our itty-bitty yard before, but have I ever mentioned the WORLD'S LARGEST OAK tree that sits in the middle of it? This sucker's so old, it's gotta be pushin' 100 and it drops more nuts than a high-rise asylum caught in a 7.8 richter. In addition to the copious amounts of acorns, it also drops tons and tons and tons of leaves. I mean a WHOLE LOT of 'em.

Last year, being the good wife but bad environmentalist that I was, I bought hubby a nice, heavy-duty leaf blower. Because nothing motivates a man to do yardwork like a machine that requires ear protection.

Guess what is now taboo at our house. Yep. Guess who tabbood it. Yep. So now guess who's in charge of cleaning up the leaves. Yep. Sucks to be me.

Yesterday, I took the kids out front and attempted to rake the easy part of the yard. This is how it went down:

2:00 - Raking Commences

2:05 - Daphne has to go "boopie"

2:10 - Raking Re-commences

2:15 - Ethan wants his cup of water

2:20 - Raking Re-re-commences

2:25 - Yell at the kids to stay away from the road

2:30 - Tell Ethan to stop rubbing leaves on his face to see if they are poison ivy

2:35 - Tell Ethan to stop rubbing leaves on his sister to see if they are poison ivy

2:36 - Resist urge to tie children to tree while I rake

And so it continued ad nauseum until I smartened up and got them each their very own broom and told them to sweep the driveway. Which they kind of did. The three of us had the front yard raked in just under 90 minutes. Alone, it would have taken about 30.

But it got done. And you know what? Despite the mild case of toddler-induced frustration, I actually enjoyed it. The smell of the crisp, fall air, the crunchy noise of the leaves, the light workout and, of course, the fun of jumping with the kids into the leaf pile. The best part? No long-lasting effects of ear damage - unless you count the piercing squeals of delight from the kids.

Savings:

Let's say it takes me roughly four hours to do the whole yard with the electric leaf blower. That equates to roughly 5 kWh, not a huge amount, but keep in mind that I would probably have to do this three times per season, for a total of 15 kWh. I could walk down the road right now and point out at least ten leaf-blowin' neighbors. If we all just put down our noisy machines and picked up a rake, we could save 150 kWh. And an assload of noise pollution.

Difficulty Level: 2 out of 5

No doubt, it requires more physical energy to rake leaves than it does to blow them away. However, I could always just pay the kid down the street a few sheckles to rake the yard if I was unable to do the work myself. But let's face it, I could definitely use the extra workout. Besides, I can't wait to rake a huge pile out back, right at the bottom of the slide. WHEEEEEEEE!

Day 135 - Either A Borrower Or A Lender Be

Doing What I Tell My Kids To Do: Sharing

There's been a lot of discussion in my Compact Group recently about the importance of sharing. We all know that it's the nice thing to do, the neighborly thing to do, but rarely do we think of it as the ecological thing to do. But it is.

Think about all the items in your home that are used so infrequently that you might not miss them if they were gone for a week, a month or even a season. From weed-whackers to rakes, sports gear to power tools, we all have items we don't use on a regular basis. All of these possessions you have stowed away in the attic, basement or garage may be of use to your neighbor or friend. Why not let them borrow instead of buying?

Just as there are HUGE eco-savings to be had when buying used products, borrowing leaves a nary an ecological toeprint. Savings from borrowing include: the resources required to manufacture the product, all the packaging associated with buying new, the transportation required to ship the product to the store, the cost of keeping the store open, lit and heated, etc. All of this disappears when we share with our neighbors instead of buying our own item from BigBoxMart.

I'll be the first to admit, I'm not always the best when it comes to sharing. Somewhere along the line, I became... well, possessive of my possessions. I worry that if I were to lend something out, it might get damaged or lost. A valid fear, some may say.

Well, as you all know, I don't ever post about something I'm not actually willing to try and so I've given this 'sharing' issue quite a bit of thought. I've decided that if I'm going to really embarce sharing, I'll need to adopt a new way of looking at my possessions. Here's what I've come up with:

Products are not people. People count. Products don't.

Not very catchy and it doesn't rhyme, but it does remind me of where my priorities lie. How sad is it that I need be reminded of such things anyhow? Shouldn't that be an inherent human truth? That stuff is just stuff and if it were all gone tomorrow and all I had left were family and friends, I would still be ok.

Wow, pretty philosophical post today. I must have loaned out my sarcasm. Hopefully it'll be returned to me in time for tomorrow's post.


Savings:

Incalculable


Difficulty Level: 2 out of 5

Lending out my possessions will be easy. I have a four year old son and a two year old daughter. My house is at maximum capacity of people who don't share well. And I simply do not need to be one of them.

Borrowing, on the other hand, will be slightly more difficult. Why does it take a bit of pride-swallowing to ask your neighbor if you can use his seed spreader? Is there some weird human chromosome that makes not having your own seed spreader seem like a personal inadequacy? Do we really think our neighbors stand around and gossip about it?

Pssst: Did you hear? That freaky eco-chick doesn't have a seed
spreader. What the hell is wrong with her?... And what's with her hair?

Ah, it seems my sarcasm has already been returned. See? Sharing really does work!

Day 134 - I'm Gonna Wash That Sodium Laureth Sulfate Right Out of My Hair

Switching to a Naturally-Derived Shampoo

I think this may actually be the last chemically-infused product in my bathroom and I'm so glad I'm finally done with it! It took me a long time to use up the last of my Redken shampoo, but it's finally all gone and I can now switch to a more environmentally-friendly alternative.

I'm not quite ready to go the homemade baking soda shampoo route, but am very excited to be switching over to another product from my new best friend: Burt, of Burt's Bees. I know, I know - BB was recently brought out by the nice folks who bring you Clorox Poison Bleach, but until you can find me a better smelling solution than BB's Very Volumizing Pomegranate, I'm sticking with it.

As with the kids' baby wash, the BB shampoo is Sodium Lauryl/Laureth Sulfate Free, Paraben Free and Phthalate Free. Although made of plastic, the bottle contains 80% post-consumer content. And, according to the label, the shampoo is not tested on animals (I'm assuming the bottle isn't either ;-).

For you hard-core plastic avoiders, Burt's Bees does make a shampoo bar, which is sold in a cardboard box. I would have picked that up to try but didn't even know it existed until I did an online search, which was after I had purchased my bottled version. If I can find a shampoo bar locally, I'll give it a try. "Shampoo Bar" -- sounds like a salon that serves drafts, doesn't it? Someone should open one. I would definitely go there. Even a drunk stylist couldn't give me a worse haircut than I already have and I'd probably tip better if I was sloshed.


Savings

Mrs. Pigpen is now down to washing her hair only four days per week. Eek. When I write it out in black and white it makes me sound gross. But really, I'm not. Or rather, I am, but not because of my hair.

So anyhow, that's about 1 teaspoon of chemical goopiness avoided per day, about 3 ounce per month, 36 ounces per year. Join me, and we'll make it 72.


Difficulty Level: 1 out of 5

Redken. Burt's Bees. As long as it gets the dirt out, I don't care about the brand name. What I do care about is the consequence of its use.

Day 133 - Wash N' Wear N' Wear N' Wear...

Wearing Clothing Until It Actually NEEDS Washing

Remember last month, when I thought I was so clever to come up with the idea of wearing my jeans twice before washing them? Yeah, well, turns out -- that's a pretty slippery slope.

Apparently, wearing previously worn jeans is like the gateway drug of garment re-use. Because, folks, I gotta be honest, I am checking damn near every article of clothing to see whether or not I can get a second run out of it. My very scientific method for determining the wearability of any garment is: The Sniff Test. Not all items make it to the test lab (there's a difference between "green" and "gross"), but lots do -- like sweaters, sweatshirts, hoodies, and sweatpants.

Surprisingly, most of my items pass their initial post-wear sniff test. They don't always pass the no-coffee-stains-or-toddler-snot-trails test, but they seem to hold their own against the old nose radar. At least, I think they do. If you see me out and about, maybe you could be a pal, take a whiff, and either confirm or refute my results.

What does my rapid decline into pigpen-mode have to do with the environment? Water. And lots of it. Sweaters are bulky. Sweatshirts are bulky. Hoodies, sweatpants and jeans are all bulky. And they all take up loads (pun intended) of space in the washing machine.

Savings:

If I can get two runs from 8 bulky items per week, I'll save two loads of laundry every month throughout the whole cold weather season. That translates to a savings of over twelve loads of laundry per year: About 144 gallons of water and over 28 kWh saved.

Difficulty Level: 2 out of 5

You always have the fear that your nosedar is wrong and you're walking around smelling like a middle school locker room after basketball tryouts. But, just remember: Those that mind - don't matter; and those that matter - will tell you when you're stinky.

Supplemental Post - Being Carded

Update on Christmas Cards

A couple of weeks ago, I posted about my Christmas Card dilemma as part of my Christmas Planning Series. My quandry was that I love to send out holiday cards to friends and family, but it's not a very eco-friendly thing to do. The options, as I saw them, were:

1. Don't send any cards at all

2. Send e-cards

3. Send cards made from recycled paper and soy inks

4. Send whatever card I like

I asked for your opinions and were surprised to learn that most of my tree-hugging friends felt it was ok to indulge in some holiday cards, especially in the spirit of the season. Of course, we all knew I was just going to ignore the advice and make my own decision anyhow.

But I hate the thought of all of you staying up late nights, worrying about my decision, so I thought I'd let you know I have decided to go with a combination of #1 and #4. I couldn't resist the funny cards at VistaPrint and had to get them. I'm hoping their message will inspire some eco-talk amongst the recipients, or at least get a couple of chuckles. But, to help "offset" my purchase a bit, I will be trimming down my Christmas Card list this year.

I didn't know where to draw the line between friends, acquaintances and social contacts, so I came up with this little litmus test: If someone is a close enough friend or relative that I could call them up and ask to borrow something or bitch about stuff, then they are someone who should get a card. So if you get a card from me this year, feel lucky, but don't answer your phone because it might be me needing something. Or feeling bitchy.