Lonely shoe reuse

What do you do with a bunch of single shoes? Connect with an amputee organization, that's what!

I stumbled across this post from 211 info and thought it was a cool and creative fix to what could have been a "waste" problem.

Earth home tour

Earth homes demonstrate a way to live in more harmony with the planet. Let's take a look at one:

Some of you that know me on a personal level know that I recently* went to Wisconsin for a week. My good friend and former Green Drinks partner, Laura, moved back to her home state about six months ago*.

sunlight shows through a banana leaf
in the solarium of
Ann and Wayne's home.

Awhile ago, we had been discussing her aunt and uncle and the fact that they had built an Earth Home. I've been fascinated with Earth Homes at least since I was in college. I don't remember how I first heard about them, but I do remember this crazy hippy book where someone had basically built themselves a shelter out of whatever they could find in the woods. I've read a ton about them since then but had never actually been inside one. I casually mentioned to Laura that I'd love to see their place if it wasn't too far. It was luckily only about 1/2 an hour from where we were and her Aunt (Ann) and Uncle (Wayne) were gracious enough to let us wander around and take photos of their home.

I took lots of photos, but a few came out blurry and I also somehow neglected to take a photo of what the whole house looks like from outside. (How could I have missed such an important shot? Well, my only defense is that I was so excited about touring my first Earth home, I just plain forgot!) Originally, I was going to post a bunch of shots in this post, but I think it makes more sense to just link you to the web album and let you enjoy the photos at your own pace.

I want to say a very special Thank You to Ann and Wayne. They are such sweet and gracious people. This was one of the highlights of my trip!

Enjoy the tour! If you want a full travelog of our trip, scroll to the very end*.


*Sometimes I suck as a writer. I get an idea in my head of how I want a post to go and then the post ultimately suffers for it, because it never gets published. (Perfectionism, much?) I'm sure this is true of all writers, but I sincerely wish it hadn't happened to this post. I wrote this post I think almost a year ago (sheesh!!!) and am finally posting it today... I had wanted to get it "just right" but ended up just never posting it, period. Shame on me. At least you can now enjoy the photos. Also, the travelog was something I had intended to post as well, but that got dropped half way through the trip (was having too much fun) and it has a bunch of missing data. Anyway, I had a great time in WI-Laura went way out of her way to pack a ton of fun into my trip and I'm happy to say I get to go back at the end of this month to see her again.

Living today, with tomorrow in mind

What does "reducing consumption" actually look like? Is it as hard/scary as it sounds? Does it mean "sacrifice"?

These are some of the questions I tackled last night while giving my new presentation. I wanted to write this post to follow up on it and to share some related resources.

dried chickpeas from the bulk section in
a reusable fabric bag. The bag was made
from some curtain material, bought at a
thrift store. This helps eliminate the
plastic bag or the steel can that
would normally be associated with this purchase.

The more I do this job, the more I realize that while recycling is good, we're not going to recycle our way out of the mess we're in. We need more aggressive measures. Also, the majority of the environmental effects/footprint of the stuff we use comes well before we ever set hands on that stuff. In other words, the manufacturing of an item is generally more important than the end of the life of that item.

To illustrate this point for my audience last night, I linked to this report. It's a life cycle analysis (LCA) done by the Oregon DEQ that compares different ways to deliver drinking water and the differing environmental impacts. Unfortunately, I did a poor job of illustrating my point last night, but when reading back through that link this morning, I realized the bullets do a good job of saying what I was trying to say.

Some other relevant resources from the presentation:
Paper Karma helps you reduce unwanted junk mail
Two different "online resources" presentations I've given in the past with lots of lists/ideas (These can always be accessed in the right-hand bar under "Resources")
Using fabric as toilet "paper" (Two caveats for this link: 1. I'm not sure how concerned I am personally about BPA or BPS in my toilet paper and the author doesn't link to any evidence in the post. And, 2. I'm not attempting this in our house-Not-hubby would never go for it, and sometimes you have to choose your battles. I included it, though, because it's another instance in which I had a knee-jerk reaction to a concept, but once I read the post about it, it doesn't seem so "scary" or "weird")

I talked a lot last night about consumption, but I think this article is a good one to read for a different way of looking at how we feel about consumption. (Turns out, we're all a little sick of it, actually...)

Lastly, I think one of the easiest ways to reduce consumption when it comes to food is to buy in bulk. Here's a really great round up of some of the benefits of buying in bulk and there's also a "buying bulk" challenge that you can participate in this month (April, 2013) and perhaps win a prize!

I've noticed that my own knee-jerk reaction to the term or concept of "reducing consumption" has been that it will be a sacrifice and people (including me) don't like change of any kind, much less sacrifice. But the most interesting thing about creating these new habits is that after awhile, you realize you're not really sacrificing anything. Moreover, there are hidden benefits (saving money, not having to deal with excess packaging, etc.)

What are some habits that you've created? Did you find it hard or did you feel like you were sacrificing? Were there unexpected benefits?

Worst infographic I've seen in a long time

Yesterday, I was working on a new presentation and I was looking for an old infographic that I had seen awhile ago about plastic bags vs. paper bags. As I love infographics in general, I ended up clicking on a bunch that weren't the one I was looking for, but stumbled across this one that is truly hideous. It's things like this that make me realize why people find recycling so confusing. I've dissected the infographic for you below, as I don't want anyone to mistake the original for something that could be used in its entirety. Content managers-PLEASE-if you're going to write about something that is not your normal area of expertise, find someone whose area it is and have them review it!

*Some people may think I'm being overly pedantic when it comes to calling out this infographic on the basis
of using a drawing of a full water bottle. The thing is, though, that we've found time and time again
that when you use a picture like this, people will then assume that liquids are fine to throw in to curbside carts.
Let me assure you right now, liquids are never acceptable in curbside recycling carts. I also think it's irresponsible to try to have a list of "recyclable items" and use only a few pictures. This is not an exhaustive list and the lists vary by area, widely. (I've written about this extensively.) It just seems arbitrary and therefore unnecessary, to me.

You can *reuse* trophies, but I don't know anyone that recycles them. Moreover, they've just broken the cardinal rule of recycling outreach and that is to say that something is "recyclable" without qualifying how/where to recycle it. Trust me, if you don't specifically say how/where, these items are going to end up in recycling carts. There are very specific items that your curbside carts can accept (with good reasons) and if you start throwing in random items, those items are likely going to be a taking a long trip to the landfill. Also, juice boxes are acceptable in our recycling carts (but not many...) See why it's a bad idea to make generalized lists of what's recyclable and what isn't?

Ok, here's where the author *really* lost me. I believe what happened is that she read somewhere that paper can be recycled into the items listed (kitty litter, greeting cards and egg cartons.) But, then, in the translation, it became that these things can be recycled into paper.
PLEASE do NOT stick your kitty litter in your recycling cart. We CANNOT make paper out of it. We're not magicians.

I believe this table is an oversimplification of this info. The problem with any resin code info dump is that it perpetuates the myth that the resin codes tell you something useful about the type of plastic and its recyclability in your system. I've written before (a couple different times) about why this is an erroneous approach to take.

Bottom line? If you're wondering what is acceptable in YOUR curbside carts, seek out localized info. Your city or county governments should have some good info (and/or try your hauler-the company you pay to pick up these materials.) Please read infographics like the one mentioned above with a heavy dose of skepticism...

*The Reuser grumbles, "Paper from kitty litter...geez..."*

Food waste composting-same as yard debris?

Recently we had a customer write in with some questions about food waste composting. Our neighbors to the south in Portland, have had curbside food waste for a little over a year now and we get this question a lot. When is it coming to Vancouver? Why can't we just throw our food waste in the yard debris carts? 

Below is my answer to our customer. Perhaps you'll benefit from the information, as well:

The facilities that process yard debris are different from the facilities that process food waste. The process for food waste composting is much more complicated than yard debris and the established facilities where our yard debris is sent are not permitted to compost food waste. 

There has been some discussion of curbside collection of food waste, but those decisions are made at a City and County government level. What I like to say is that the City and County make the rules for waste and we implement them.

In Portland, curbside food scraps were being sent to a facility in Washington County. Unfortunately, due to many problems, this facility is on the verge of not accepting this type of waste. Food waste composting in general is a very new concept-and as such, there are still many “bugs” being worked out of the system. You mentioned waste being turned into green energy. I believe the process you’re speaking of is anaerobic digestion, but that is not being done with any of the food scraps collected in the Portland area.

My prediction is that we will someday have curbside collection of food scraps here in Clark County. However, when that will be I really couldn’t say. In the meantime, I’d highly encourage you to check out the backyard (home) composting workshops put on by the Master Composter program here. I learned everything I know about my own backyard composting by attending one of these workshops. A large portion of kitchen wastes can be composted in a home setting and someday, we may even be able to put the other food waste items (grains, dairy and meat) in a curbside cart.

I hope this helps answer your question. If anything I’ve written is not clear, please let me know and I’d be happy to elaborate.

FREE Recycling Basics class

It's time once again for the 2013 schedule of free classes. Sign up for a class.

Recycling Classes for Neighborhood Associations: Learn & Earn

Plastic Bags ~ Nursery Pots ~Aerosol Cans ~ Cardboard Boxes ~Motor Oil ~ Yard Debris ~ Antifreeze

Would you like to learn more about recycling – What goes in the cart, what doesn’t and other places where things can be recycled? Well, you can AND gain some funds for your City of Vancouver neighborhood association treasury at the same time.

Please join us for a free recycling class at one of these times:

• 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 26, at the Cascade Park Community Library, 600 NE 136th Ave. 

• 9:30 to 11:30 a.m., Saturday, Apr. 6, at West Van Materials Recovery Center      

• 9:30 to 11:30 a.m., Thursday, Apr. 11, at West Van Materials Recovery Center (full 2013 class schedule linked above)

City-recognized neighborhood associations who send a representative to one of these classes and publish an approved recycling article in their neighborhood newsletter can earn $120 for their neighborhood association treasury. For more information or to pre-register, please call 360-619-4122, and provide your name, neighborhood association and phone number. 

Plastic Bags ~ Nursery Pots ~Aerosol Cans ~ Cardboard Boxes ~Motor Oil ~ Yard Debris ~ Antifreeze

Get your glass straw!

Last year, I posted about how much I LOVE my glass straw. I love it so much so, in fact, that I asked for some more for Xmas this year and got them!

If you'd like to give a glass straw a try, Glass Dharma is giving away more this year.

As I've discussed before, it takes some time to create a new habit. I definitely have my bag habit down and I'm really close to having my take away container habit. Last night (and frequently lately) I've been noticing when I order water in a restaurant, they automatically put a plastic straw in the drink. My next habit to work on is to ask for water with no straw.

Green gifts-what my family got this year

First of all, yes, I know this post is ridiculously late. I hope to some day write for a living (and thus, you can expect regular content updates) but that day is not today. If you think this post is late, you should know I've been sitting on a post since August of this year and I'm thoroughly embarrassed by it, because it's a virtual home tour and the lovely people that let me in to their home were so excited about it. But...I'll get to all of these things eventually!!!

I blog fairly frequently about lessening your environmental impact around the holidays. I wanted to share with you the gifts that my family got this holiday. Everyone got at least one gift from me that had some kind of green "cred." It might have been handmade by me or by someone else or it might have been reused-come from a thrift store. Here they are:

Mom: My mom loves blue. She loves lapis, so gifts for her often are pieces of lapis jewelry. This year, when I was in Spokane on business, I stayed an extra day (had a fabulous day!) and found an artist's cooperative shop. I bought handmade lapis earrings and a blue glass pendant for Mom.

Not-husband: NH and I invested in a new bed this year as our Xmas present to each other. So, we didn't do much else in the way of gifts. I did, however, make him some handwarmers (he's always too cold and me too warm.) out of some of the fleece left over from the scarf I made (see below.)

Brother 1: I found these nerd propaganda posters from a local artist for NH and decided to get my bro one, too. He also works on cars fairly frequently, so I made him a citrus scrub as well.

The carriage that transported us around the
Wade House-a living history site in Wisconsin.

SIL 1: I found green beaded earrings that made me think of L when I was on vacation in August, in Wisconsin at a little local handmade vendor fair. She also got a scented candle that she admired while we were shopping at Check 'Em Off, Green

Brother 2: J got a handmade wooden bottle opener, purchased at Check 'Em Off, Green and some handmade seasoning blends (made by a colleague and I-we made enough for secret santa gifts and some for my bro, too.)

SIL 2: V loves foxes and I often find things for her that are fox themed. (a handmade custom hat from Etsy one year, framed fox prints the next.) Earlier this year, in one of my favorite local thrift shops, I found a fox T-shirt that I thought she might like but it was not her size. I went ahead and bought it anyway and then used a fleece sweatshirt that I gathered at the clothing swap to make the pictured scarf.

cut t-shirt panels. Was trying to decide
white vs. brown fleece.

went with the white fleece in the end.
Finished scarf

Nephew 1: C often asks for video games, so I helped buy a game but also found one of Matt Groening's books for him at a local book shop.

I decided to give the potions some names.

Nephew 2: Since my youngest nephew and niece are a bit younger, I was able to create some things for them. J got a handmade Harry Potter wand (inspired by this, but I decided to use large gauge knitting needles instead of chopsticks-bought them from aforementioned thrift shop) and also made him some "potions" in reused bottles. (I glued the lids shut, so J&L wouldn't have to worry about the bottles ever spilling.) These potions are much more interesting in real life and I was pleasantly surprised by how much J seemed to enjoy them.

J loved this hat when he saw
it at Check 'Em Off, Green

J also got a handmade alien hat made from old sweaters, purchased at Check 'Em Off, Green and some honey sticks from a local beekeeper (he loves those-also purchased at Check 'Em Off, Green.)

The wig in-process

Niece: Earlier in the year, J had received a handmade Rapunzel wig from me (for her birthday) and I also made her a tutu in pink and purple. I also had an extra "potion" on hand for her in pink and it was a good idea, since J&J are thick as thieves and when he was "mixing potions" and "saying spells" on them, she wanted in on the action.














Cousin's kid: I also made hair bows for all the little girls in my life. They were inspired by this post. R got some of these, as did 4 other little girls.

some of my first hair bows (and some
rosettes I made out of scraps)

more hair clips-the pic on the right shows them all ready to go. I used some vellum map material
to cut out tag shapes and then wrote on them with Sharpie.

So, there you have it. I bought some of these items as early as this time last year. I use an iPhone application to keep track of my Xmas list and this helps me save money by not only buying things when I see them but also by buying me time to prepare thrifted items for gift-giving.

I'm very lucky to have a family that not only accepts reused/thrifted gifts, but who also buys them for me. We also use fabric bags in our family to cut down on wrapping paper waste and it's become somewhat of a "thing" to have the bags reused year after year.

Here's hoping you had a fantastic holiday season and you got some fun gifts this year. Anything you're particularly excited about? Leave a little note in the comments-I'd love to hear what you and your family do to save money or reduce waste in the holiday season.

Doggy poo-Are you being "green" by paying extra for so-called "biodegradable" plastic poo bags?

The very short answer is, "No. Don't waste your money." Use whatever you have on hand (pardon the pun) to clean up after your dog when you take her out for a walk.

I've mentioned before some of the worst things that a recycling specialist can hear. (I should do a separate post on that!) but one that crops up fairly regularly for me is, "I buy those special biodegradable doggy poo bags!" I added the exclamation point because people are usually so proud of themselves for this purchase. The truth of the matter is that the doggy poo is likely going to the landfill, correct? If it goes to the landfill, not a lot is going to happen. Landfills are created specifically for safety first and that means not a lot gets in or out of them. In other words, the conditions you need for decomposition (light, moisture, oxygen) are simply not present in landfills. So, what is Fido's poo doing in the landfill in that special bag? Much the same thing it would be doing in a plastic sack. Or a paper one. Or a plastic glove. Or grandma's china. It's just sitting there.

So, don't waste your money on biodegradable doggy poo bags. Or anything that has a claim of biodegradability that will ultimately end up in a landfill, for that matter.

One last waste-less holiday post

I quickly wanted to share this page with you from Resource Recycling. Some of these suggestions might be a little late, but I enjoy their round-up(s) of recycled content products.

In addition, don't miss my two previous posts about wasting less during the holiday season. Even if you've waited this long, some of these gifts can still be purchased/made in time for the 25th.