today was a day to get the element back in shape for the trip back to boston tomorrow (sigh). so off I went to get my oil changed, tires rotated, air pressure checked, air filter replaced and my inspection sticker brake tag renewed. these things pretty much run like clockwork. very time efficient, but what about the environment? I noticed an “environmental disposal surcharge” on my work order, so I asked. does this in fact mean that you will recycle what you can and safely dispose of the rest? I was assured that environmental best practices are in place nation wide, but this truly begs the question, where do all of those fluids go? this calls for more research.

my helpful mechanic also mentioned that I was just a bit low on brake fluid, so I stopped to pick some up. while I was at the auto parts store, a friendly expert gave me a couple of everyday, household item upcycling tips.

he mentioned that pouring a can of coke on the battery connections will actually clean off the corrosives that have accumulated. does this really work? he also told me a great reuse for dryer sheets. I personally do not use dryer sheets, but I grabbed all I could from the rubbish bin at my mom’s house for this tip. it seems that USED dryer sheets are the best thing to get bugs and grime from the windows and grill of the car. I always love a creative reuse tip! I was also informed that a cleaner car actually improves both performance and fuel efficiency, so keep it clean people!

then I set off to fill up again at another bp station. while I was there I noticed that they are really trying to swing the greener drivers over to them by offering complimentary sunflower seed packets to customers. once again, I have to hand it to them for creative marketing & in effect providing carbon offsets to each driver who chooses to grab a packet. if I have to fill up, isn’t it a nicer option to go with a company that also makes the garden grow? “Plant a sunflower, make the world a little brighter!”

then it was off for my afternoon of time with the green project. I wanted to personally deliver the check for the “green jeans day” that we held at our hotel during earth week. and of course- we wanted to volunteer. we basically helped to move LOTS of wood into the shelving units, bundle salvaged bead board and enjoyed time outside giving a little back to the city. my friend e was so inspired that she became a member of the green project and purchased some shirts for us to take home. I wish I had more time to spend there- and I definitely plan on getting back to do more very soon! thank you to the entire green project team for being so hospitable and generous with your time!!

namaste.

-stop destroying our planet. it’s where I keep all my stuff.

today we decided to try to revisit the garden district since yesterday was a total wash out. literally. we headed straight to magazine street and decided to have a lovely brunch out side on the patio of a charming space called lilette. it was an amazing experience. I then dragged my friend down to grab a wedding cake snowball. a decadent new orleans version of a snow cone. we also found a few tokens to bring back to the ones we love at several local boutiques and wandered through the thriving uptown neighborhood. visiting this area is quite deceiving as it looks as though it was completely unscathed by the storm.
my favorite find of the trip was definitely this messenger bag made from a recycled fema blue tarp that was a typical sight after Katrina. perfectly sized to house everything I will need for jazz fest tomorrow, and completely water proof, of course! I purchased the wallet as well from a great store called UP which is inside winky’s on magazine.
some of the other finds I absolutely could not live without included a t shirt from desirenola.org, which is an organization trying to rebuild small businesses in new orleans. I also picked up several pieces of handmade silver jewelry from local artisans. all in all, a great spring afternoon spent shopping revitalizing a lagging economy.

on sunday- it was all about the jazz fest. my girlfriends & I packed up our water bottles, blanket, digi cameras and headed out. it was a bit on the hot, muggy side and my friends were beginning to complain that refilling our water bottles with luke warm water wasn’t the best idea. I had a feeling they were going to start buying cold bottles and contributing to the waste, when one of the girls decided to head to the beer kiosk and request ice. smart move. we filled up our canteens and iced down our pulse points to keep cool.

we enjoyed the day filled with food, dancing & harry connick, jr. he was the last performer of the fest and we all were caught up with his set that included many new orleans standards and some of his new pieces from oh, my nola. I would also like to mention that many of the musicians in town for the festival also gave time to the habitat for humanity musicians village project, which harry is heavily involved with. john legend, joss stone and many others lent helping hands and publicity to the city during their visits to nola.

in surveying the complete mess that was the fairgrounds after the fest was over, I thought out loud- “I wonder if next year they will allow non profit organizations to come into the fair each day after all the performances to pick up all the recyclables. then the non profits would provide a free service to the organizers of the fest & they could use the money that was collected, and the waste stream would be cut down considerably.” my friends loved this idea. hmmmm, I see a plan forming. quint davis, are you listening? we definitely did our best to make as little impact on the fest as possible. we 3 are all of the “leave things a little better than you found them” mindset, so as we walked back to our car (parked several blocks away in front of someone’s fema trailer- where their house once stood) we picked up and cleaned up a little.

it was a fantabulous weekend!! I not only got to spend time enjoying my city with two of my closest friends, but I also got a little insight into how there is always room for new ideas and programs. stay tuned! more to come.

namaste.

Well, we’re back from a whirlwind week in Chicago at the All Things Organic tradeshow.  Personally, I’ve never had such a lovely time or met so many wonderful people at a tradeshow-  so thank you to everyone who attended.  All Things Organic is an exhibit of only certified organic products and companies, so you can taste your organic Stone Mill beer and then walk a couple feet and try some of Amy’s new organic Margharita pizza.

Besides all of the sampling, one of the highlights for me at the show was a seminar about carbon emissions.  Many companies, including I’m Organic, are educating themselves on the best way to reduce their carbon footprint.  Nancy Hirshberg, sister of Stonyfield Farms’ founder Gary Hirshberg, moderated the seminar.  Of course the first step is always to reduce as much as possible our carbon emissions-  create efficiencies in our systems.  And, what’s left over, we can offset.  But, I learned that not all carbon offsets are equal.  What we’re looking for is ‘additionality.’

Additionality can mean that we fund a carbon-saving project that wouldn’t have happened without our money.  For example, one of Nancy’s favorite projects that Stonyfield did was to replace the boilers in an aging school in Oregon.  Their old boilers were wildly inefficient, but they couldn’t afford new ones.  So, Stonyfield bought them new ones and in turn, was able to reduce the school’s carbon footprint dramatically.  Since all carbon emissions wind up in the same place and we’re all effected by it, it doesn’t really matter where we help to reduce (whether locally, regionally, nationally, or internationally).

One of many pieces of inspiration in a week of organic feasting.

There’s no doubt that compact fluorescent lights save energy and money.  In fact whole countries have converted to using CFLs.  There’s one drawback to using CLFs and that’s the presence of mercury in the bulbs.  Every CFL bulb contains a small amount of mercury which is no problem as long as the bulb doesn’t break.  Imagine then the bulbs being thrown in the garbage.  When the bulb breaks mercury will leach into our environment.

There are a few options for dealing with used CFLs.  IKEA accepts used bulbs for recycling.  If you’re not near an IKEA store, you can check the lamp recycle site to see if your recycling center has the ability to accept the bulbs. 

If you have directional lighting, you now have another choice.   EcoLED bulbs are new on the market and are unique because they contain no mercury.  I take this as a good sign that companies are looking for products to develop that are safe for the environment and energy efficient. 

today we decided to head uptown to do a little antiquing/shopping on magazine street and grab some lunch; however, mother nature had other plans for us. with a torrential downpour happening all over the city simultaneously- we were in the throes of a major storm.
now storms are always just a little disconcerting for me in general. and although I have been known to saunter through a shower or promenade past the puddles– wading through waist-high water is not exactly my cup o green tea.

the streets were flooding fast. a mix of water pumping station failures and rapid rain accumulation generally does not bode well for the low-lying crescent city.  it was getting difficult to maneuver around the city and my post katrina nerves were a little on edge. it seemed every street we turned on had more water than the last. when  we witnessed a united cab stalled under about 2 1/2 feet of water, it was time to head back to home base.

I can’t say enough how I love new orleans. being raised here- it is deeply embedded everything we live and breathe. but this city is in trouble. nearly two years since katrina, people are forgetting about the lost crescent city. they are letting go of the horrible memories of how storms can ravage our gulf coast. the gulf coast is necessary for our ecosystem. our marshes and wetlands are dwindling after years of human neglect and violent storms. coastal errosion is claiming some of the very coast that is so vital to the gulf region. one thing I am re-realizing during this trip is how very far my city still has to go. in my heart, I know that I can do more. I will find a way to do more.

namaste.

today was a day that I lessened my impact by lessening my family’s footprint. we went to the grocery and I brought along tote bags for my mom. she scoffed, of course. “There is NO way everything in this cart (filled with organics, of course) is going to fit in those bags.” now what my mom didn’t  realize in this scenario, is that totes generally fit 2-3 plastic bags worth of groceries (4-6 if your wasteful store double bags, yikes!!) and I just smiled to myself. when we were done, there was even one bag left over. I was a little bit smug when I responded, “wouldn’t fit em all, huh?” but my point was made. my granny, on the other hand (an 85 year old grits woman) absolutely adored them. “Look at those pretty bags!! Where did you get those from?” when I explained that they were going back into my mom’s car for future shopping trips– a little gift of sorts, she was visibly excited.

now that I had the bag thing won, I moved into phase two. green power. My mom is now using geaux green from her local electric supplier. by purchasing blocks of alternately sourced energy, she helps her grid and drives the market towards making greener options more viable for all of the gulf states. I also had trees planted in honor of mother’s day for all of my mothers. mom, granny and mother earth. then, just for good measure– I enrolled them in native energy’s wind builders for carbon offsets.

phase three. minimizing the disposables. there was a plastic water bottle battle that I also won.  my granny was drinking 2-3 bottles of water a day. I expressed to her to save a bottle and refill it with the filtered water. keeps the bottles out of the trash (post katrina recycling in louisiana is virtually non existant) and the water is better for you. she agreed. she saw recently on the news that bottled water is not held up to stringent standards and that made sense. seems like a baby step, but this one is huge. she doesn’t sway easily, as you can imagine. when I get home, I am going to put together a care package that includes a very nice reusable bottle- maybe I can coax her one step further.

phase four. fair trade. with father’s day also quickly approaching, I have set my dad up with a coffee subscription from the arbor day foundation. he’ll get 2 lbs. of ground shade grown, fair trade coffee every month. he drinks quite a bit of coffee- but he is a step ahead- because he always brings his own commuter cup and brews from home. he is not the coffee house type.

all in all, these changes are of the small variety- but as we have beaten into the ground- every little bit counts. I am  extremely proud of my family for their willingness to adapt and to not look at me screw faced every time I made a suggestion. as I am learning every single day, gentle nudges are far  more effective than forced nagging in the greening of one’s very southern family.  namaste.

Like every household in America, we have laundry.  We actually have lots of laundry.  Today is laundry day, but I am not at all upset about it.  I love doing laundry when the weather is nice because it means I can use my energy efficient dryer, the clothes line. 

We live in the country so when I hang laundry I get to spend long moments in the warm sun listening to the birds and looking at the fields bloom with yellow mustard and dandelions.  Even if you don’t live in the country, you can benefit from hanging your laundry.  I also use a laundry rack which works inside or outside.  A big rack can hold a whole load of laundry.

According to the Rocky Mountain Institute, air drying your laundry in the summer alone will save 779 lbs. of Co2 from being released each year and save you about $43.00.  Do this all year and you save about 1,386 lbs. of Co2 gas.

Now if I could just get the laundry to fold itself and put itself away.   

today we took a much needed sleep in, eat big, run errands, work online kinda day….
while doing the latter, I found a great piece with wonderful news for me and every other mac-loving-green-geek out there. since the article is chock full of details that paraphrasing would not do justice, I have the link here for your perusal.

a greener apple

what do think this means for the future of electronics corporations and e-waste? do you think that this will inspire more computer manufacturers to create green intent mission statements with details of laid out timelines and future plans?

for the sake of all of us, I truly hope so.
congrats, apple! keep up the good work.

well, after 2 days of travel through the dark of night, rain and hail (yes, hail!!) we have finally arrived a little worse for the wear in new orleans. we drove straight through with minimal stops. although we did have a little detour that cost us a couple of hours, we managed to do fairly well. my son also handled the trip just like the little trooper he always is. it was only in the last two hours of the journey that he even went into toddler over stimulation mode. really.

calculating the footprint of the trip so far- I would have to say that we did better than I had projected. we did have one foodstop of the fast food variety, but overall- we stuck to the hummus and pita chips, soynuts, sunflower seeds, fresh fruit, yogurt and granola that I packed into the cooler. we also had plenty of green tea lemonade and organic juice to keep us well hydrated. I also brought along a handy sack to keep all of our recyclables.

I also made sheryl crow happy by using almost no bathroom paper products. and while I understand her recent “joke” about the one square rule, I personally went one better. I also have this personal neurosis that forces me to reuse napkins and paper towels as many times as humanly possible, so if I take a napkin from a restaurant to wipe my hands- I will also then wet it to wipe some sticky toddler mess down. then let it dry out to reuse later. one napkin typically gets 4-5 uses before I take what physically amounts to nothing more than pulp to the disposal.

we also stuck with bp gas stations, because my research leads me to believe that they are in fact the most environmentally sound of the big oil companies– even though that initself is an oxymoron. [from treehugger]:: As Athan Manuel, the director of lands protection at the Sierra Club, puts it to the Washington Post, “Compared to their colleagues in the oil and gas industry, they’re the best…[But] Being the best of the oil industry is like being the smartest of the Three Stooges. At the end of the day you’re Moe, you’re still a stooge.”

still bp does have greener programs in place, and since I do not currently drive an alternative fuel vehicle, concessions do have to be made. in addition to the offsets and donations previously mentioned, I also renewed my monthly donations to the trust for public land, coop america and the NRDC. call it southern guilt or whatever you want- I
felt like I truly needed to minimize the impact in as many ways as possible by spreading the green work around. the green project is also one of my pet causes. I am currently involved with several fundraising projects with them and I as I have mentioned- I will be volunteering with them on monday.

day two post later, after I have some much needed sleep and much craved poboys!

namaste.

We applaud Sheryl Crow’s recent proposal to combat global warming. “I propose a limitation be put on how many squares of toilet paper can be used in any one sitting,” states Crow. Though it has recently been revealed that Sheryl was “just kidding” to “draw attention to the issue of global warming,” we at I’m Organic™ say- “Sheryl, my friend, you are genius- don’t give up so soon on this idea!” We think that rationing usage to 1 square and up to 3 for a really big job is an idea with a lot of potential. The only obstacle in the way of its implementation is considering the root cause of toilet paper wastefulness!

Judy found the fatal flaw in the theory when she wondered, “Well, what about… you know… when it’s sticky?”

As we say at I’m Organic™, “healthy crops, healthy craps.” In order to save the planet, we must have healthy bowel movements. This will enable us to limit our ‘squares per sitting’ to the ideal Sheryl Crow so bravely defined.

“If Americans continue a lifestyle with constipation, excessive flatulence, and sticky poop, surely the virgin forests and landfills will suffer” says Jill. “The only cure to this spiral of destruction is to choose organic and healthy foods, high in fiber and nutrients.”

If we keep our crops healthy, our craps will be healthy. And that is the only real way for Sheryl Crow’s vision to be realized– Sheryl, let’s work together, for all the crops and all the craps out there. Let’s do it for the planet.

ps:  and for some bathroom inspiration, check out our video…