Typical

Check out this link from National Geographic.

It's part of a series on globalization. I found it oddly touching and informative. Kind of like finding your center again in the middle of a yoga class.

What got to me was the part that mentioned choices, and that each choice we make has a huge impact when multiplied by 7 billion.

Good Garbage

Here's a link to another blog post on the Seventh Generation site.

It's actually Good News, kind of. Apparently, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is a lot smaller than people were led to believe.

This doesn't mean that you should go out and start buying more plastic. It just means things are not as horrible as you thought, and that the planet as we know it might have a few more years.

Tapped - bottled water is bad

I just watched Tapped, a documentary about bottled water.

If you aren't sure just how evil bottled water is, take a look. My pulse is still racing.

Green Hypocrite

I read this article on Yahoo the other day.

It really hit home for me because I am afraid of being a green hypocrite. I know I turn up my nose at bottled water and raise my eyebrows at SUVs. Education is key.

Fuel

I recently saw a documentary called Fuel.

Have you seen this? Apparently it's not new, just new to me.

Watching things like this bother me. I start watching and the film starts parading out facts and I want to say "I know I know, but what do I DO about it?" The film definitely has an agenda, and critics can be harsh. But still, it has it's points. We are running out of oil. We use it for everything. The oil companies pay off our politicians. We go to war for it. And we turn away from all other options. We're killing ourselves, painting ourselves into a corner.

And what can we do? It's so easy to say "yes, but I hate thinking about it. I'm going to buy myself a bottle of water and then take a drive in my SUV to keep my mind off it for awhile."

If nothing else, it made me think about getting a diesel car next time around.

Art: Food For Thought

Here's a fun site to look at. And think about. Running The Numbers.

With my luck this guys been all over and I'm just finding out about him now, right?

No Trash - challenge

I saw an article on Yahoo about this couple who refused to produce any trash for a year. This is their blog.

Think about this for a moment. No trash. That means no throwing anything away. Everything must be recycled, composted, or reused in a creative way. You would have to grow your own food, preserve your own food, make your own gifts - I mean, everything comes wrapped in plastic.

I think this is cool. I wish I could do this. I wish I had the guts to. And I suppose I've already started taking smaller steps toward meeting this goal. I think if everyone gave this a try, the world would be a cleaner place, a better place.

But it does kind of get me started thinking about the folks in charge. Why is there still styrofoam? Why do people still use paper plates on a regular basis? Why is it that the simplest toy needs to come in three times its weight of plastic? Why now, when we know what we know, are people so stupid.

And yes, I'll say it, it's stupid. If it's a business decision, it's stupid. If it's a money issue, it's greed. If it's a time saving or labor saving issue, it's laziness. This is where my rage takes over, and my disgust at people refusing to take any personal responsibility comes out.

So here's the challenge - less trash. I'm not naive. I know I'll end up producing some trash. But I can really try to cut back.

Dinosaurs To The Rescue

We got this book at the library.

The boys love it.

Part of caring for the planet is teaching children to respect and care for our planet, because that way our knowledge and our actions can become sustainable themselves. I am proud, reading through this book, knowing that we already do most of the things suggested - recycling, saving water, reusing items instead of throwing them away.

Ozone

I just read this little yahoo bit about the ozone.

When I was a kid, being responsible to the environment meant picking up your trash and not using hairspray with chlorofluorocarbons. Because the chlorofluorocarbons dug away at the hole on the ozone and made it BIGGER!

I hadn't really heard about the hole in the ozone for awhile. I guess people talk about other things these days, like preserving wildlife and air pollution and recycling vs. organic farming vs. energy use. Our oil based lifestyle can be pretty distracting.

But really, it's all part of the same thing. It is an intricate thing, this planet and the life that lives on it. And we depend on it. Some people argue that we are not the cause of certain changes, that global warming is a myth, that climate change is a natural occurrence, that we aren't sure. But I think we owe it to every living thing to change our ways, just in case. Even if it means we won't make as much money, or might have to give up a few minor conveniences.

Power Grid

We have incorporated destroying our planet into our way of life. We do it in such a way that we don't have to look. Like hamburger on our plate, we give no thought to where it came from.

We all do it. We all get up in the morning, and take for granted the hot water rushing into our homes. We don't think about the chickens, when we cook our eggs in the morning, or the oil or gas or electricity we use to cook them.

Having these things to make our lives easier is not a necessity, but a privilege. We need to learn about them and the effects on the planet. We need to be responsible. With Power Comes Responsibility.

Born Toxic

When I was pregnant I remember reading the list of things I was not supposed to eat. Alcohol. Soft cheeses. Some fish because of mercury. Lunch meats because of nitrates. Between what I couldn't stomach and what I couldn't have I was left with a diet of white bread.

Last week I read This Article about toxins, chemicals, entering the womb and effecting infants before they even take their first breath. It's part of a TV report by Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Toxic America, which aired last week and which I didn't see. But the article really made an impression.

I'll be honest with you, I cried.

You know those nightmares where something terrible is happening, and you stand there, screaming, waving your arms, trying to get all the people around you to SEE, and the smile at you and just walk on by?

That's what I feel like, right now.

Check this out if you're interested in what contains Toxins.

ABC's 123's and the 3 R's.

Last week I was surfing the web looking for "Summer Homework" ideas for my kids, and I just happened to notice that Scholastic has a "Green Living" section for parents on their website.

Green is in. It's very in. Everybody's doing it. But like all fads, it's subject to change. I'm afraid that at some point someone or some corporation will dangle something shiny on the other side, and we'll turn our heads, forgetting how we wanted Green only moments before.

I would like to instill in my children a need to care for this Earth and all living creatures on it. But I know that, even though they may see me use reusable grocery bags, they also see many who do not. While they may see me use green cleaning products, they also hear people say I'm a fool for doing so. While I might speak about buying less and making do with less stuff, they see the stuff they do not have. After all, do all adults live the way their parents would have liked them to? Not hardly.

Seeing this section on the scholastic website fed me a little bit of hope that maybe I can create a lasting impression.

Energy Challenge!

Energy Wise or Energy Water? Go here to see!

It turns out I produce less than the regional average of Co2 per year. And less than the national. According to the calculator. But the calculations are, of course, done with my input, and I'm not so sure I have certain things right, like the miles I put on my car or the fuel efficiency. Still, it's kind of cool.

And if you're interested in tips, there are Mini Energy Calculators, which tell you not only where you can save the earth in your home, but save money, too! Again, my problems come when I realize that I have no idea how to go about re-insulating my home, or how to fix those cracks I can see around my windows.

Finally, you can go on an Energy Diet! I think this is funny, because I've compared my journey to losing weight. It's really just small tips for each month, broken down in smaller bites to make then easier to swallow. I'm big on making changes this way, because gradual change is easier to take than sudden lifestyle upheavals.