Tag: Eco-FAQ

A Patriot in the Garden

You know all that flag-waving, “true-American” rhetoric we hear from the Rush Limbaugh conservatives? I was thinking about that today, as I was pondering getting our organic garden ready to spring planting. It’s Ok. I know I am preaching to the choir generally.  But a good argument is worth saying, just in case it’s seeps…

The Wall

This heat has No name at all until You remind yourself He. Is. There. Exit the climate-controlled Iceblock Bedroom Only to hit The Wall. Day 11, A River of Stones

The Lawn Mower Heard Round the World

My husband is mowing the lawn right now… Shhhh. Can you hear that? No that isn’t (just) the sound of our gas-guzzling 42″ Ariens Super-Deluxe Tractor Mower/Cheese Slicer. That’s the thundering palpitation of his heart. Damn, some things a woman just CANNOT get in the way of, no matter how environmental-y she is. A man and the…

An Hour of UnShopping

I just got back from what I like to call “unshopping” — a painful and ludicrous part of consumer culture. This is when we de-stuff-ify ourselves. In this particular hour, I made four stops: To the church recycling dumpster, which takes cardboard and #5s, so I don’t have to throw them away. To return cans…

All These Distractions

I recently joined a Facebook group that is a group and a game where points are awarded for posts, pics, links and comments, based on their wittiness and hilarity. The group’s moderator however, really prefers somewhat crude jokes, so I have to dip deep down in the barrel of my wit repertoire to get points.One…

First Pesto Of the Season

From our organic garden… Well at least the basil is. The recipe is “Classic Basil Pesto” from a great new cookbook called “Put ‘Em Up” by Sherri Brooks Vinton. Makes me really admire the makers of all organic foods … Timing of foods, storage and transport is not easy!

Fighting Back Against Planned Obsolescence

Or, Why you MUST Attend my Electronics Recycling Event this Weekend Or Or, Why You MUST, at least, Start Recycling Electronics SOMEWHERE In the world of electronics, planned obsolescence rules. What makes the iPod (sorry, no iPhone! Ooops what’s that? The IPAD, I mean!) so appealing? Eternal updates, that make it better faster, more capable…

Earth Day, Imagined

I found that my iPhone’s App Store “What’s Hot” as Green Apps featured today, as part of Earth Day celebration and I am thrilled. Earth Day is 40 years old today, and now it is almost ubiquitous. Everywhere there are thousands of events, so many that it is impossible to even get to all of…

Kelly Ripa – Super Cupcake Momma!

Let’s face it… Neither you nor I can think of a single thing we don’t like about Kelly Ripa. I mean, come ON! Witty, freakin’ adorable, snazzy dresser (but not too showy!)– she is the ultimate Gracie Allen to Regis’s 958 year-old George Burns. That’s One Cupcake with a Cause! When I started seeing uber-Kelly…

A Midwestern Crossing

Photographer David Ottenstein Stops Time in Iowa The last thing I expected to see when I went to a gallery meetup at the Ridgefield Guild of Artists on Saturday was HOME. The Radius 2008 Exhibition featured the best of their emerging artists from the last 10 years, and one of those was photographer David Ottenstein,…

Three Questions for the New Year: Part Last!

So we made it through some pretty brainy landscapes this week in the pursuit of pondering the end of 2008, and the dawn of HOPE, 2009. To be sure you aren’t taxed too much, I leave you to think about this simple yet all-important issue, one that often doesn’t get near enough attention in the…

Diametric Adoration

In the middle of my procrastination/break from grading, I visited my email and Google reader and found good stuff from two different women in my life… oh they make me SO crazy! First, there’s HEATHER! Heather the green wonder-mama, now appearing in ANOTHER feature near you! I’ve done some freelance work for Heather, so she’s…

Of Old Wood and Hands Made

Our Farm Table, by David Ellison of Lorimer Antiques We recently had our “new” dining room table delivered to us. It was the last piece of the renovation puzzle in our “green” family room.  It really is green… the walls are not only painted green, but were painted with low VOC paint (low harmful fumes)…

The Perfect Marriage: TiVo and Netflix

My husband, maybe to mock my attachment to my typewriter, or maybe just to give me the good news, sent me this article, today. It breaks the much-awaited news (at least around our place) that two of the greatest entertainment inventions: TiVo and Netflix, are going to join forces. This is akin to the Wonder…