Things that other humans are doing

Below are random environmental related things other people are doing/writing/inventing that make me happy

The government passes legislation to help bees

Get rid of junk mail while planting trees

Shared items (like lawn mower) so everyone doesn't have to own one

Send a picture of you and any Harry Potter book and have trees planted in your name

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is the greenest book ever published

a tv that is package with it's own stand

don't buy new refurbish

why should i pay more for organic?

here's 10 more reason to buy organic

and best of all....
Lush uses popcorn for packing material

it's the small changes people!

"Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could only do a little."
~Edmund Burke

edible flowers

Can you tell I am cleaning out my files? My random posting may reach epic proportions before this is all done.

Today I am giving some tips I found in the AMBP magazine: Yummy flowers
Calendulas (pot marigold): add petals to anything for a peppery taste. Also are nice addition to bath or foot soak actually all of these are a nice addition to water treatments.
Daylilies: I've never tried them, good cooked or raw it says and has been used in China to ease the pain of grief. They have tons of antioxidants.
Dandelions: The plant people love to hate. flowers are sweet and can be made into wine and the leaves are good cooked or tossed into salads, I like them but they are a bitter.
Hibiscus: The flowers are beautiful and add beauty to any meal. Cranberry like flavor with citrus overtones, the tea is beautiful pink/red and yummy.
Squash Blossoms: Yummy fried in batter or stuffed.
Pansies: Mild minty flavor and is a great garnish being beautiful in color and delicate looking.
Roses: All are edible but the darker the color the more flavor. Use them everywhere!
Sunflower: It is best eaten when in the bud stage, and apparently tastes similar to artichokes. When the flower opens can use the petals which are bittersweet in flavor.

Tips:
Do not eat flowers from florist or garden centers as these have probably been sprayed. Also do not eat flowers from the side of the road as car exhaust is not good to ingest and makes things taste awful. If you don't know if the flower is edible, don't eat it. Bad things could happen. Look in grocery stores and farmers markets for edible flowers sold in the herb or salad section. Don't eat too many flowers at once, they don't taste all that great so I'm not too worried about y'all on this one. Most important use flowers that look good and are free from bugs... unless of course you need more protein and want to get it from aphids instead of meat, then by all means chow down... just don't invite me for dinner :D

Bottled Water

Lots of new information coming out on this. I find it funny that people think tap water is not very healthy when it is monitored several times a day and the bottled stuff from coke and pepsi has lower standards and testing results are kept classified. Unfortunately good bottled water is often shipped from far away places, loosing it's environmental and health benefits by the fuel consumed during travel. High end restaurants in San Fransisco and New York are embracing the low environment impact and are cutting imported water from their menu's.

Here's the article
Top 5 reasons to avoid bottled water

SierraClub fact sheet

So raise your glass high, drink up and refill from the tap.

The Croc Epidemic

An Article on Slate that my bestest friend pointed me towards!

How a heinous synthetic shoe conquered the world.

Her are some of my favorite excerpts....

"Shoe fashion tends to swing dramatically on the pendulum from practical to beautiful, largely because shoes are even more utilitarian than clothes—and stylish clothes are rarely as uncomfortable as stylish shoes. Since everyone needs shoes, they are particularly susceptible to the tipping point phenomenon: When enough people are wearing ugly but comfortable shoes, others jump eagerly on the bandwagon, thrilled to be released from the bondage of straps and buckles. And so Crocs represent a kind of rebellion—a vanguard of the comfort movement."

'What is more certain is that some podiatrists are alarmed by their patients' fanatical embrace of Crocs; most Crocs, doctors point out, provide only moderate support. "I'll get people with strained arches because they've been running around in Crocs for five days," said Arnold Ravick, a doctor of podiatric medicine in Washington, D.C., and a spokesman for the American Podiatric Medical Association. "When it comes to shoes, people mistake comfort for support. Comfort is fool's gold—a soft gushy shoe that makes your arches collapse," he told me. "Crocs are popular because they're inexpensive and interchangeable. For people with certain problems, they can be a good shoe. Are they good for your foot, in general? No."

I have to totally disagree with the above podiatrist, except that yes if people are used to wearing shoes with lots of support and then cold turkey go to Crocs, there will be problems. So note to anyone reading this Crocs will not make your arches collapse, in fact over time your feet will get stronger, BUT be sensible and use moderation when switching shoes... any kind of shoe need a slight adjustment period.

New Moon

It's the new moon and I'm not sleeping... which considering the amount of chatter going on in my brain is not surprising. So here is a fun game a wonderful friend passed on, all about manifesting on the new moon.

Pick 5 seeds you want to plant for this coming month, mine are:
* create works of art
* listen to my guides more often
* move my body
* connect with people in meaningful ways
* have a really good belly aching laugh

Then as a mantra use each of the above and create a new catch phrase and assign each of 5 words to a finger so you have a physical and verbal reminder of your seeds. Let's create miracles!

CLMCL (my letters, I picked L for laugh on the last one, you can re-arrange the letters to suit)

Creating Life Manifesting Copious Love

Now I have my daily reminder and can say this lovely phrase over and over and remember that every time I say it I am making a pledge that I will actively nurture these desires.

Aah the bliss of settling the mind through intention. I think I can sleep now!

Water Travel

I have been traveling a lot in the last two months and I am so grateful for the opportunity to see other parts of the gigantic country I live in.

At the end of June my spouse and I were blessed with the opportunity to go on a cruise to Alaska with his family. It is a vacation I would never have chosen for myself. Why because I tend to be a frugal, hippy type traveler, prone to pick international destinations and hostels, no frills and no extras. Plus my water travel tends to happen in a kayak, not a floating city. I have to say, I had more bags for these 7 days than I took in my last 2 trips combined. We had an amazing time and the experience has made us likely to participate on another cruise at some point. If a country to run half as efficiently as that ship seemed to run... wow! we would be living in an amazing place.

But here is the secret, I was extremely hesitant to go on this adventure. I hate those giant ships, they are an eyesore and the environmental destruction they do! Ack! I was besides myself with the disgust. To prevent myself from finding an excuse to cancel or ruining my trip with an illness, I decided to do some faery work in advance hoping to neutralize my impact on the trip. It worked and I had more fun that I ever anticipated. What's even better is my husband had so much fun for weeks after he would look at me and say "I miss our cruise."

Yesterday while cleaning out my pile upon pile of old magazines what should pop up but a wonderful solution to our vacation woes. A eco-cruise line!

Not a fruity umbrella drink in site, no casino or dance club on board and no stupid art auctions! Ahh the beauty of being with people who do yoga on deck in the morning and get out in kayaks or snorkel gear to interact with nature. So I'm setting aside funds and someday I'm going to join one of these beautiful, environmental journeys. A place where I can be thoroughly pampered, see nature, and make a difference. It's a win all around!

Oh and for those who want to offset their travels through carbon funds here are 2 options
carbonfund
co2balance