365 Days, 365 Ways...To Go Green

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I have been out of commission for a few weeks and am looking forward to getting back to transforming my home, house and soul to eco, green, sustainable and whatever else living healthier and happier might be called. And, back to blogging so stay tuned.

I spent time with family over the past few weeks and, in particular, my parents, who have always been friends of the environment not because it was a movement but because it was the only way they knew how to live. I am not sure if living a sustainable lifestyle is the perscription for a healthy life or not but it sure has worked for my parents. My dad, at 85 years of age is difficult to keep up with. Most kids notice that their parents get smarter as they get older. I, on the other hand, was a much slower learner - like decades slower! Here are the top ten lessons that I wish I had picked up earlier.

1. open you windows - ALL of them
2. take off your shoes before you come in the house - EVERY time
3. dispose of veggies and fruit in your compost pile or bin - FIGURE out a way
4. recycle, recycle, recycle - EVERYTHING that you can
5. buy local - WHENEVER possibe
6. connect with nature - OFTEN
5. build community - EVERY day
8. take your vitamins - ALL of them (without complaining, Dad!)
9. give back - WHENEVER you can and as OFTEN as you can
10. inspire the Joneses and live true to yourself!

On a closing note I want to share a small town story with you. On the last day of my visit I went to church with 60+ members of my family at the small church across from the house I grew up in. Did I mention that I was home for a family reunion? Normally 60 members of my family are never in one place at one time - but I digress.

My cousin was the minister, my aunt and cousins the choir, and various family members took on other assorted duties. It was the same way when I grew up only I was the one singing with my aunt in the choir. For a small town to work everyone has to pitch in.

After services were were asked to step outside of the church to cheer on a local soldier returning from Iraq, who would be driving by. Soon the whole congregation was standing along the narrow country road (sidewalks are unheard of) and within minutes we caught a glimpse of the local volunteer fire truck soon to be followed by a procession of family cars and last but not least the Harley Davidson team who volunteer to welcome home those who serve. Every vehicle was decked out in American flags and as they drove by all 75 parishoners hollered and clapped for one soldier, one community, one nation. Step aside Disney you have nothing on Flat Rock, Michigan!

Maybe it's time to inject a little small town America into our own communities. I am going to give it a try!

CBS News just alerted me about my dirtier than my toilet cell phone. OK, I'm over the 'why didn't I think of that' to what's the solution.

According to Information Week cell phones can cause pimples, boils, pneumonia and meningitis from bacteria such as "Staphylococcus aureus which is a close relative of the superbug MRSA. OK I'm listening!

The first line of defense for all bacteria is to wash you hands. It can be as simple as that. But if you are lazy in that department and you don't want to replace germs with toxins by using antibacterial wipes (sorry ABC) there is a solution.

This article was the motivation for me to finally make a cheap, easy and green spray to keep that cellphone and other gadgets clean. Here's what I did
- found one small, clean spray bottle (recyclable)
- bought one bottle of lavendar essential oil (or tea tree oil will do)
- filled the bottle with 1 cup of water, added 20 drops of oil and shook well
- sprayed the solution on a microfiber cloth and wipe off my cell phone
- while I was at it I wiped off my home phone, my office phone, iPod, computer keyboard,
sprayed the kichen counters and, of course, I did not forget the toilet seat

Caution: Don't put essential oils near your eyes and check for allergic reactions. My mom is allergic to tea tree oil so she only uses the lavendar oil.

HMM what else can I use this for?

Green is IN! Live Earth is one of the most popular tags on Technorati today. Who wouldn't want to part of the biggest rock concert ever and it's happening in 7 continents for 24 hours. Amazing. Plus it's 7.7.07 today! Is it Mother Earth's luck day? It can be if we all make a commitment to change because a healthy planet means we are healthier as well.

Global warming is the main reason for the Live Earth concert but a healthy planet goes beyond that. Pollution, pesticides, genetically modified foods, factory farming -- the list goes on. It's hitting our pocket book as well as our health and well being. Are we up to the change we need to be in this world to make it better? That we Save Our Selves (SOS)! Spend the night with Bon Jovi, Kelly Clarkston, Keith Urban, Alicia Keys.....and it gets better. Just check this site out. While you are watching make a commitment. Make this not only the biggest rock concert ever but the biggest commitment humanity has ever made to change our home for the better. Put on your thinking caps and dig DEEP -- what can you do to SOS!

My commitment is to vote with my dollars even more than I do today, to buy local whenever possible, to educate others and not harm others by the way I live my life. Not sure what to do?
Submit a pledge on this Live Earth site and have a great 7.7.07!

I was watching Jay Leno's Jaywalking a few days ago and he was asking people 'who did we gain independence from and when was the first Independence Day'? So to assist the Jay Walkers who didn't have a clue (including a college teacher), we gained independence from the British in 1776 and the first Independence Day was in 1777.

Being an independent nation gives us freedoms many people in other countries envy, it gives us a voice and it gives us choices. We have a voice at the polls during elections to ensure our elected officials are environmental stewards for example but we also vote daily with our choices, our dollars. For every item we purchase there is a green choice...choices that do not harm our environment, our families or other people. Choices that ensure our future.

We have fought for generations to keep our freedoms but everyday we make personal choices that may not be the best for the earth we are so preciously protecting with our greatest resources our sons and daughters. May we make our own personal commitment this July 4th to protect our Earth everyday by the way we live our lives everyday!

OK, my buying spree is almost over, but when I was at Target they had an outdoor shower on sale for much cheaper than I could ever make one. We have a pool and after a swim everyone takes a shower and that's water down the drain. I have always wanted an outdoor shower and this was a cheap way to see if we would use one as well as try my first attempt at greywater collection. Greywater collection is utilizing the water we use to shower and wash our clothes to water plants and trees in our yards. For our family especially in the summer that can be a substantial amount of water.

The clincher was that the wood portion of the shower was made from FSC wood. YES! The FSC is the Forest Stewardship Council and they are the greenest solution when it comes to buying any wood products.

When I finally get my shower hooked up I will use the greywater to water my apple tree and whatever else I plan to plant in the area.

I soon found that buying my outdoor shower was just the beginning to my attempt at greywater collection. My shower will simply hook up to a garden hose but how will I filter out the chlorine? What types of soap and shampoo can I use? How will the water drain to the apple tree? How else can I use the water? How do I insure there is no standing water to attract mosquitos? How will I protect the wood with a product that is safe for my plants? Is there anything I haven't considered?

Stay tuned as I unravel to answers to my first attempt at greywater collection!

When I bought my office chair I also purchased new chair cushions for my lawn furniture. They were on sale and my cushions were so old they were shredding.

I Iove my new cushions but what to do with the old ones. A few years ago I wouldn't have given tossing them into the trash a second thought but that was then and now I'm trying to be more responsible about trying to find a re-use solution. They weren't good enough for FreeCycle or Craig's List so what to do?

My dog solved the problem for me when I saw her cozied up on one of the cushions after her swim. I took them apart, sewed covers for them from old towels I have been saving and gave them to a pet shelter! Problem solved and the pet shelter was thrilled with their new doggie beds.

So think before you toss someone may benefit from your 'treasures'.

My office chair fell apart a few months ago and when I have time I've been looking for a reasonably priced replacement. I really loved the concept of the ball chair but it would kill my budget so I kept looking. Since I didn't have a chair I became an expert at working with my laptop on my lap but it also meant that I would get very comfortable and find myself napping instead of working.

This week I found myself in Target looking for a birthday gift for a friend and there was my ball chair for $21.00. Actually it was an exercise ball. I noticed Greg from the Urban Farm using an exercise ball in lieu if the more expensive ball chair a few months ago so I decided I would give it a try.

It works great at 1/4 of the cost. Plus if I get bored I can work on my abs! It is supposed to, however, release spinal pressure, encourage spinal alignment and increase circulation and energy. I was a 'slumper' in my office chairs and that does not happen on a ball chair. It's much more comfortable than I expected so problem solved. Thanks, Greg for an awesome idea.

Which is exactly what the pool store manager said when I asked him if the diatomaceous earth we use in our pool filter was safe. Yes, I had a very shocked look on my face. I know the diatomaceous earth we use in our pool filter is not the food grade D.E. that is used to kill insects but with no warnings on the packaging I had assumed it was safe.

So what is the difference between pool and food grade D.E. I had some research to do. I found out that pool grade D.E is chemically treated and partially melted. It contains crystalline silica which is an inhalant hazard and we never wore a mask when we added D.E to the filter.

We purchased an alternative called Fiber Clear which is the 'non-toxic' alternative. It is cheaper, easier to use and is environmentally friendly. It's also harmless to fish. Not a problem that I know of in Arizona but I used to live near Lake Superior so I like that the product won't pollute our streams and lakes.

Am I happy? I am glad I asked the question. I don't just assume now that I am trying to live a greener lifestyle however I have to admit that the answers always seem to shock me. If I were a pool store manager would I want my customers to know that there was a safer product on the market and not wait for them to ask?

Am I satisfied? Not yet. I looked up Fiber Clear on the web and there wasn't a lot of data available so I wrote to the company asking for ingredients, manufacturing details and a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for the product. Being green simply means being more aware!

Yesterday my daughter bought 2 blow up rafts for the pool, brought them home, blew them up and tossed them in the pool. In a few minutes she was sunning herself floating in the pool on one of the rafts. Then I saw the rafts tossed on the lawn. It seems the rafts smelled to badly that they couldn't use them.

The smell came from the toxic chemicals used to make the PVC vinyl soft and pliable. We will be replacing the floating PVC pool toys with noodles and have learned a valuable lesson.