Enjoy

Today is a beautiful day in Southwest Florida. The air is crisp and the sun is still shining. No matter where you are, here on the beach or up north sitting in snow you should go outside and just enjoy the environment around you.

Look at the wildlife and the grass and the trees. Take a big deep breath and try to describe what you feel.

I stepped outside today and smelt fresh brisk air. I squinted at the sight of the sun and laughed when I saw a couple of birds chriping and fighting over a piece of bread. Life isn't always about your job, school, or just trying to get by. If you just take a moment and enjoy your surroundings you might find some peace inside of yourself.

Try it, you'll feel better.

"I eat grass"

Vegan.
The word doesn’t really appeal to me. I don’t think I could stop eating meat. I have a love affair with chicken and eat it at least once a day. Even soup, chicken noodle soup is my favorite. But going vegan is good because it saves on resources or something to that nature.

My point is that I can’t eat a salad just plain with nothing on it. I love french fries on salad (I think that’s a Pittsburgh thing). I have to say that I don’t feel full unless I have some protein from some meat. I'm sure vegans can get the same nutrients from vitamins but how appealing is it to say "Yeah, I eat grass." No thank you.

Not that I’m saying people who are vegans are crazy. They’re just a bit unstable in my mind. I feel like if I don’t eat this piece of steak then it’s going to waste and who wants to waste food? Wouldn’t it be better to eat Kosher foods anyways?

I don’t understand the big deal about not eating meat anyways. I will continue to eat meat daily and vegans can continue not to. More steak for me.

Speechless

I found this picture through another blog. If a picture is worth a thousand words than what do you think this one is saying?

If you couldn’t make out what the heck is in this picture it is of an Albatross carcass. They cannot distinguish between food and our garbage so when they eat the things you see here in the picture they starve to death.

Look what we’re doing to poor animals from our waste.

Motivate Me

After my last post I realized that it’s a lot harder than I thought to be so environmentally friendly. Taking the caps off of my plastic water bottles before I throw them out is irritating. I feel like this is a lost cause.

I mean how many people recycle? How many people recycle the wrong things or the wrong type of plastic? I’d confident when I assume that a lot of people do that. I do it. It’s ridiculous how many materials are out there for us to use and reuse at some point and time.

I decided I needed a motivator to help me through my troubling times of saving the planet. I found a blog with a gentleman who is trying to throw nothing away for a whole year. Doesn’t that just sound crazy?

Well he’s doing it and makes me want to do it too (Ok, I probably could not do this for a whole year but at least help me be more aware of what I am throwing away).

How many things do you throw away in a single day? Just think that this guy is doing 365 days and looks like he’s doing a great job too.

Week Event!

This week is Green Week on Regis and Kelly. During the week they are going to give away a 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid. I’d love to win that but I don’t think that’s going to happen.

Anyways, if you missed today’s episode have no fear; I am willing and able to fill you in.

They had a so-called “expert” on their show today talking about recycling. I say “so-called” because when she was talking about recycling newspapers Regis asked her about the process and she said she didn’t know! Hello?! You preach about this stuff and you don’t even know how it’s done?

The guest expert also talked about how when you recycle plastic bottles you should take the cap off because it’s not made of the same plastic and cannot be recycled. Just throw it out. I hope that someone can come up with a recyclable cap soon because that’d be helpful.

There was also talk about wet cardboard and how you shouldn’t recycle it if it’s wet because it gets clogged in the recycling machines. Also plastic bags are bad but we’ve already discussed this.

Clean lint out of your lint trap after every load of laundry to save about 30% of the energy. Good tip!

Today there were some good tips and I’m looking forward to seeing what they have on there tomorrow. If you can’t catch the show their website will update every day too. I hope tomorrow they have someone else other than the lady that was on there today being an “expert.”

So have a good day and remember when you go to recycle that plastic water bottle you should throw away the cap!

Eco-Friendly Restaurant

The other night my boyfriend and I decided to go someplace other than Outback to eat dinner. Thank goodness. We decided on a place called Ted's Montana Grill and I'm so glad we chose that restaurant. Did you know Ted's is eco-friendly?

What we noticed right from the start was the straws. They were made from recycled materials and could get a bit soggy at the end of your meal but I didn't mind. I felt like I was doing better for the planet by just eating there.

Another thing they had was recycled paper to put down on your table to basically catch all the mess and food you spill during your meal, because things could get messy there with their ribs, burgers, and chicken sandwiches.

They only had cloth napkins which they could obviously wash every night and reuse.

Those were just some of the things I saw without even reading on the website. I hope this restaurant trend catches on and others try to do little things to help the world.

I'd highly recommend Ted's not only because it's eco-friendly but because the food is amazing. They hand-make their french fries and have bison. Bison is a little bit better of meat other than ground beef. It's a little more expensive, maybe a dollar, and has a better taste.

So if you're in the mood to try something new then here you go. Ted's is located at Coconut Point and the Coastland Center Mall.

Vroom...you smell like a burger and fries...

After watching a repeat of Rob and Big last night I was inspired to educate you all on vegetable fuel systems for your automobiles.

There are a few things that you need to know/do before having your car converted to run off of grease.

I'm not sure if I'd take the plunge and get my car converted but I might buy a Hybrid.

Take me Out to the Ballgame

Baseball season is upon us and I can already smell the hot dogs and popcorn. The little kids screaming and the wave rotating around the stadium all remind me of energy efficient ballpark stadiums. Well, not really. But now I’m excited to report that there is such a thing! In Washington, D.C., the Washington Nationals are the first to open a Green U.S. Ballpark.

The stadium was certified in the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, LEED, rating system. Here are a few qualities it carries that other ballparks don’t:

Efficient lighting technologies
Low flow bathroom fixtures
Use of recycled building materials
Stormwater management system
Green roof with plants which manages rainwater and temperature

It seems to be a new trend. The New York Mets new stadium, Citi Field, plans to open in 2009 with eco-friendly materials and resources just like this one.

And for all you sports fans out there that didn’t get to watch the game that they played on Sunday here's the ending score: Washington 3, Atlanta 2

See, being environmentally conscious helps you win games. Not really, but that’s what it looks like ;)

Bug off!

Ah, spring. What a wonderful time to be surrounded by….flowers? No. Love? Definitely not. Oh yes…umm… bugs! And don’t you hate that disgusting smelling and sticky no less, bug repellent that not only keeps bugs away from you but also most people? Me either.

This is why California Baby has created such a wonderful product on an organic bug repellent.

You’ll still smell but instead of the disgusting sticky odor you’ll smell like lemon and citrus, which I know, is still unappealing to some people. You’ll smell like spring time because the active ingredients in this non-toxic spray are lemon eucalyptus and citronella.

I’d rather use this bug spray then the one I currently have in my first-aid kit. The one I have says, and I quote, “Harmful to Humans.” Why did I even buy this in the first place?

I feel much safer with the non-toxic version.

I'm added!

I'm excited because I was recently just added to the Best Green Blogs Website!

There are numerous blogs on the website that all bring a different view into green living. I hope you enjoy searching through some interesting blogs.

On the highway to.....smog.

The recent rise in gas prices makes everyone who owns an automobile pretty irritable. To help save some gas money and conserve our earth here are a few tips to get you through.

1. An engine tune-up can improve your car’s fuel efficiency from 15 to 50%.
2. Opening your windows at high speeds causes drag and you fuel! Pop open the car’s vents next time.
3. By keeping your tires inflated you can save about one tank of gas per year.
4. Cruise control helps you maintain a constant speed and will most likely save you gas.
5. If you are waiting around for someone in your car, turn it off, it wastes more gas idling your car then turning it off and then back on.
6. Remove excess weight in your car. Ride light.
7. Observe the speed limit; you’ll save some money and quite possibly a life.

So you say you don’t care about saving a little money? That’s fine but you should look at the effects of car emissions on the planet. Driving a car is the single most polluting thing that most of us do. Motor vehicles emit millions of tons of pollutants into the air each year.

Need more examples?

Tap Project

From March 16th until the 22nd, I know I'm a little late, restaurants all over the country will ask you to donate a dollar for your glass of ice water that you order with your meal. By donating a dollar for your water it will give a child 40 days of clean drinking water.

How amazing is this? We don't even have to do anything out of our ordinary day. Go to lunch with friends or go and have a nice romantic dinner. Just pay a dollar more and you could help save a life.

The Tap Project website has a search engine to find restaurants in my area that are participating in the cause. Unfortunately there aren't any that I've found. How sad is it that one of the most overpopulated places in America and also one of the richest becomes one of the ignorant and cheapest?

Look for yourself.

Incoming: TRAIN

Did you all like that train?

If you didn’t’ even bother to look at it then fine. Let me just give you some interesting facts that I found on the website.

Replacing every locomotive in North America manufactured before 2001 with GE's
hybrid technology would, in a year, cut smog-producing nitrogen oxide emissions
as much as removing one-third of all cars from U.S. roads.

Sounds like motivation to me. What’s wrong with the trains we have now you ask? A lot of things. The result of smog that comes from the exhaust of a train is just one thing. But this one thing is extremely harmful to the air that we breathe every single day. GE also has cleaner coal in the works for our future. They use coal on trains but I’m sure this train uses something different. A hybrid diesel-electric train is what is in the works here. A train that stores extra energy into batteries and helps to preserve the environment is all right with me.

I’ve never taken the train before but I’m tempted to try if this is what I’d be riding in. Plus this will save me gas money, which is on the rise.

Train Ride

I'm feeling a bit under the weather but that's no excuse to avoid better living. Take a look at this hybrid train; it's spectacular.

Plus the green color is fabulous!

Happy St. Patty's Day: Where's your Green?!

Today is just another reminder to live green. I hope everyone is wearing something green today. And it doesn’t have to be the color green. It can be organic clothing that is affordable!

Planet Ink, based in Fort Myers, Florida is a great place to go for inexpensive, planet saving T-shirts and apparel.

I probably should have posted this last week so you could have received this information and planned ahead for today but I wasn’t thinking very well.

The prices on this website are great and very affordable. The shirts are made from 100% Certified Organic Cotton They are also Screen Printed With Planet Ink, which is A Patented All-Natural Vegetable Based Ink. Isn’t that awesome?

Why chose organic cotton over regular? Regular cotton can release toxins into your skin. How disturbing is that? If you want a true eye-opener than watch the video.

I didn’t have a clue about this until I watched the video and researched the topic for my blog today. What a catchy thing the internet is!

My Motivation

There are a lot of people out there that have a passion for living green and helping preserve our earth for our future generations. Sometimes you get stories on why people are deciding to live this way. I’m going to tell you why I’ve decided to maintain this green blog and live the way I do.

I’m scared. Seriously. After watching An Inconvenient Truth made by Al Gore and etc. I just realized how much of an impact we are making on the planet and it not being such a good impact most of the time. Watching the glaciers melt and polar bears die because they couldn’t swim far enough to reach what was left of the icy land. It broke my heart.

Halfway through the movie Al Gore shows the temperature rising on average and it just getting hotter and hotter. I don’t know why I ever decided to move to Florida because I’m roasting 24/7! I can’t wait to move to a cooler climate but even when I move I’m sure the temperature won’t be as cold as it was 20 years ago. There was even a theory about Florida being flooded and going under water. I sometimes sit by my window and wonder what I would do if a huge wave of water was coming.

There’s nothing I could do and that’s why I’m trying to do all that I can right now.

I want to try and make these things fun that way more people will join in. It is my hope that people will realize the impacts they are making and will do a little bit each day to help the planet. Recycle a bottle or carpool next time. Just one thing will make a difference and it will make you feel better about yourself inside too.

Happy Hour

Are you thirsty and do you think water is the only eco-friendly substance to drink? Think again; especially think again if you are a wine connoisseur. French Rabbit Merlot comes from sustainable farmed vineyards in the South of France. Sounds exquisite, no? Not only are they grown properly but they are also packed in a lightweight, collapsible, 100% recyclable Tetra-Prisma container.

The French Rabbit Merlot packaging requires less energy to produce, transport, and recycle than regular wine bottles. There also isn’t a corkscrew, it’s a screw cap that makes it easy to savior the flavor and recycle the bottle when the party is over. Don’t think that’s enough good for the environment? Well the company has paired with American Forests. For every four bottles of win sold there will be one tree planted. http://www.frenchrabbit.com/ Sorry! My links aren't working correctly so I guess I have to spell it out for blogger.

If it isn’t apparent yet, the reason this wine is better is because wine that isn’t organic can contain pesticides that can be linked to cancer and contaminate water. Not to mention the harmful impacts of the plastic packaging on numerous wine bottles and crates.

I’m hoping to not assume but I would say that most people who drink wine do so as a leisurely activity. These people are also the ones who follow wine trends and would most likely jump on the band wagon of eco-friendly products.

Everyone seems to be jumping on the band wagon of an eco-friendly lifestyle. I’m not saying this is a bad thing but I think people need to do it for the right reasons. They shouldn’t jump back off the band wagon because one of their friends has. It’s important to come to this certain lifestyle and stick with it. Just like a diet. Stick with it but once you lose the weight don’t jump off because chances are you’ll just gain the weight right back.

Pick up a Book

During spring break I had the chance to read a couple books about the environment and such. Here are a couple suggestions.


The Organic Machine: The Remaking of the Columbia River
by Richard White

It's an interesting read about the relationship between man and earth along the Columbia River. The book is not an action packed thriller. It serves its purpose and is not a form of entertainment. It's more for knowledge, obviously.

Organic Living (Organic)
by Daphne Razazan, Lynda Brown

This is more of a hands-on book. There are suggestions given to better the planet and the future of the planet.

These books will hopefully help educate people on the conditions of the earth now and how we can change the present state of harmful chemicals in our atmosphere to more clean surroundings.

Spring Break

I am taking the next week off because it is spring break and a vacation from my blog.

Don't be sad.

If you have little children to entertain or still have that inner child within then here is a project that will show the importance and uniqueness of wildlife. There are also two other projects on the pages that follow that project.

Enjoy!

They DO have candy bars!

After searching through my newly found eco-firms websites, I came across probably the most exciting topic to hit organic foods. Candy, but not just candy, chocolate! Of course it is located in Canada, so it might be difficult for the chocolate not to melt if it’s being delivered to Florida. But this is why they created a thing called dry ice, right?

How are these chocolates considered organic, you ask?

Our Chocolate Gourmet Collection comprises an assortment of premium gourmet
sweet and savory delicacies that have been made with the finest organic
and/or gmo-free ingredients. Items include; chocolate truffles, sugar coated
almonds covered in chocolate, chocolate bars, chocolate butter cookies,
biscotti, crackers, pates, tapenades, cheese, coffee, tea etc...

If you aren’t sure what gmo-free means. I’ll let the wise geek explain.

These candy bars sell for around $42. I’m not sure how many come with an order. I counted six in the picture. This might sound a little pricy for chocolate, but I’m at least tempted to try them out.

If I can eat chocolate that is better for me that doesn’t include all of the harmful ingredients in a regular candy bar then I think I’d do it.

Would you?

*Picture from Fresh Unlimited

Resources

Need a product or service that consists mainly of eco-friendly materials? There aren’t many companies not listed on this great website. You can search by Product/Service or by the companies Name.

Lunch Time

When you were in high school, or perhaps you still are now, how much food do you think was wasted in your cafeteria? I know I wasted a lot just by myself. A recent article on USA Today’s website looks on the brighter side of cafeteria waste.

San Diego State University will use only trans-fat-free oil for cooking. To
minimize environmental effects, the university has a food composting program,
and leftover biodegradable scraps are used by campus landscaping. Last year 50
tons of waste were turned into compost; this year the target goal is 75 tons.
Oil used in cooking is also recycled to produce bio-fuel that runs the campus
vehicles.

This plan seems beneficial for the school and the surrounding environment. Many schools such as Slippery Rock University and schools in Southwest Washington are jumping on board as well.

Paper Please

One of the blogs I read on occasion has an article about recycling paper in Europe.

“The European Union is on target to meet a commitment to recycle 66% of its paper by 2010, representing an uplift of nearly 10% from 2004 when the targets were first measured.”

I work in a retail store and just recently we started to recycle plastic, aluminum, and glass. I must say that by having a separate bin to recycle those things makes a big difference. Our trash doesn’t get filled up as much and I every time I put something in there I feel like I am helping my environment. The bins outside of the stores were just recently added. I am curious to take a poll and see how many other stores are trying to make a difference as well.

Also, lower prices are a great motivation to use recycled paper. Most people complain about prices rising and how much everything is. A higher demand in recycled paper means lower costs. Saving the rain forest is also a great motivation. We should try to prolong our forests for as long as we can, at least until we can grow some new ones and create more homes for animals.

There needs to be a balance somewhere. The recycled paper has an even better quality now then it did before. It has more than enough quality to surpass regular paper that isn’t recycled. I’m sure recycled paper probably couldn’t even be compared to regular paper anymore and you probably won’t be able to tell the difference. If you could tell a difference then it would be that you would find recycled paper looking and performing better than regular paper.

It all adds up

Need to calculate your harmful footprint? I’ve done this once before and I must say this website does it a little differently than most. If you don’t like to read bar graphs then don’t do this. A great plus that they’ve added after you fill in your zip code, home size, and email address and after they show you several bar graphs of what you are doing to our planet you can choose to click on “Projects.”

It is a button at the bottom of the screen and after clicking on it a new page shows up with numerous and I mean NUMEROUS ways to help your ecological footstep be a little bit smaller than it is right now. You could replace windows, install energy efficient appliances, or perform water and energy audits in your household.

This is only the tip of project ideas. There are even prices for products and what it will save you annually and what it will save you in water, energy, and CO2 wise.

If you’re looking for a jumpstart to becoming more ecologically aware then this is the place to do it. You might be surprised at how much of a footprint you are actually leaving; I was!

Almost Natural Beauty

Thanks to my entertainment news friend I received a good tip about organic make-up. To add the eco-friendly icing to the so-called organic cake, I also found a review and information on it from one of my favorite green websites!

AlmostNaturalBeauty.com: Organic makeup from Physicians Formula

A Drink and A Thought

While indulging in my White Chocolate Mocha from Starbucks, I decided to read “The Way I See It,” conveniently placed on the side of my cup.

"So-called "global warming" is just a secret ploy by wacko treehuggers
to make America energy independent, clean out air and water, improve the fuel
efficiency of our vehicles, kick-start 21st-century industries, and make our
cities safer and more livable. Don't let them get away with it! --Chip
Giller, Founder of Grist.org

Sarcasm at its best, I do believe. Chip Giller, as I later researched, as the Founder of Grist.org brings to their readers a sense of humor in news. As Global Warming and the thought of our environment going in the wrong direction bring a sudden downpour of depression upon anyone with a conscious, Giller provides interesting and hopeful journalism. After reading some articles on the website about the politicians and their views and ideas about global warming, I realized that this could sway my vote for our new President.

I do not believe that Grist is biased toward a particular candidate but that is up for the rest of you to decide.

Do you think a politician’s view on our environment would help sway your vote in the upcoming election?

It's about time!

To conclude my furniture segment I thought it would be interesting to do something that was a bit more affordable for the average American. The clocks are cute, fun, and stylish. Both clocks retail under $100.

Having an eco-friendly clock is a good idea because every time you look at the clock to check the time it can be a little reminder. It can be a reminder to not be wasteful and to look at the future of our planet.

The Juice Clock (left)is created from recycled plastic and the Square Daisy Clock (right) is created from harvested bamboo.

*Pictures from LowImpact Living.

Plus they would be a great housewarming gift for people!

You'll need some green for this

If an EcoPod is too small to fit your entire family on, you could always go for something larger. The Santa Barbara Sectional by RC Green is around $7,700 for the standard size sofas. It comes to two larger sizes, which cost a little bit more as well. The designer uses natural and organic materials to create the piece. The frame is even made out of some certified wood. Recycled steal creates the screws and springs of the sofa. There is even a wide range of upholstery options to create your own personal touch.

This sofa looks stylish and from the description seems like a great addition to an eco-friendly household. The only downfall is the price. Why do eco-friendly products have to come at such a high price? If we want more people to follow environmentally safe ways then we should make it affordable for people to do so.

Of course celebrities can afford products like this and they are usually the ones who are pushing the products on us. If they’d like to treat us to a sofa or two then I’ll accept. I think I’d rather save my $7,700 for a down payment on a house or a car. But if you have the money then I believe it is money well spent. As long as you have a house to put it in.

iPod, iPod mini….. EcoPod???

Yes, that’s right! An EcoPod for all your sitting needs. This isn’t just one EcoPod fits all either. You can create your own EcoPod from a variety of sources and materials (all eco-friendly, of course).

A “naked” EcoPod, without all the fluffy pillows and such retails for $1,079. You can choose from an upholstered with cushions to one upholstered with a bean bag. Those two are priced at around $1,200. So for not even $200 dollars more you can get your EcoPod“fully loaded” to an extent.

The EcoPod reminds me of something that would be used in a dorm room or a 20 something’s apartment. Although you never know, this could be the new design trend and people of all ages, locations, and incomes will have one.

The design is also good for small spaces. The EcoPod doesn’t take up much room. It can be tucked away nicely in the corner of a living room or bedroom. Some might even mistake it for a dog bed because it’s so low to the ground.

Need something to set your drink on?

Another piece of furniture that I’ve come across would be a coffee table. It has name: Maku Coffee Table. And it retails for $679.00. Just because the color isn’t green doesn’t mean it isn’t eco-friendly.

The sleek design attracts not only people interested in saving the environment but also people who keep style in mind. The table is made from sustainable plantation grown teak wood. Teak wood is a very durable and strong wood.

Even though this costs quite a few pennies I would say it is well worth it. The life span that you are getting from the piece far exceeds the cost. If you take care of the piece you probably will never have to replace it. And even when it did start to get worn and used you could always stain it or dress it up with linens.

Another plus to having the table? The company makes chairs and other accessories that go nicely with the table. There’s no excuse now. If you can’t afford everything at once you can always get one piece at a time.

Mirror Mirror on the Wall

Now, it’s time to go into a few segments about eco-friendly furniture. These pieces are not only good for the environment they are stylish as well. Unfortunately the first product is going to be quite expensive. There are their types: the Illusionist, $1,637, the Liliput, $2,790, or the Louis, $1,559. What is it? A bathroom vanity!

This vanity is painted out of low-water based paint. It won’t give you a headache like most paints. The creators worked with environmentally safe companies to build the countertops as well.

It would be interesting to try and build a house piece by piece with environmentally safe or conscious products. Again, these are not cheap pieces of furniture. But the payoff comes in the end when we realize how much we saved the environment.

More to come soon!

* Picture from Sprig

I want to play

Let’s face it. Children are the hardest to please. Whether it is food, nap time, or bath time children will cry, whine, and beg until they get what they want. When it comes to being eco-friendly, children can now have a part in helping our environment.

Toys. The magic word to most children when they are bored. Children love toys. Toys keep children quite and usually calm during doctor appointments, car rides, or at home.


1. Xeko Trading Card Game
2. ImagiPlay Puzzles
3. Natural Collection from Sigikid Toys
4. Kallisto Stuffed Animals
5. FantasyLand Wooden Blocks from Haba


The list includes five products that are safe for children and our environment. A couple of the items were made out of organic cotton and stuffed with wool. These were also made in Germany.

The one toy that looks extremely interesting is the trading card game, Xeko. It looks like it could really boost a child’s imagination and interest in the Earth and the environment we live in.

I’m glad these toys are here to help spark awareness in parents and in children. They can make a difference and they can have fun while doing so.

You can find a lot more toys game, and crafts through searching the web.

Pack your bags!

Part 2: Top 5 eco-friendly destinations.

5. Celestun Biosphere Reserve – Yucatan, Mexico
4. Artisans D’Angkor Silk Farm – Siem Reap, Cambodia
3. Napo Wildlife Center – Quito, Ecuador
2. Sea Turtle Watching in Rekawa – Rekawa, Sri Lanka
And #1… Drum Roll Please!....
1. Buck Island Reef National Monument – St Croix, US Virgin Islands

So I’m not sure if I have the guts to visit all of these places. I know I would definitely go to Sri Lanka because there is a lot of gemstone mining there. I’d like to find a nice big rock! The US Virgin Islands is recently visited place from a relative of mine. They loved it there and said it was beautiful. I can only imagine.

Perhaps for a honeymoon I could go to the Virgin Islands. I’d even consider Yucatan, Mexico. There’s a beautiful picture on their website of flamingos in Yucatan.

The point is if you want to go on vacation to a place you’ve never been before you should look into trying one of these ten. It would be so surreal to visit one of these places and see how they live without internet access every where you go. No television or very little for that matter, no huge SUV’s polluting the air, not nearly as much pollution as we have here in the United States.

Let's Travel

Top 10 Eco-Friendly Destinations

Part 1: Bottom 5 of the List

6. Rainforest Hike to Middleham Falls & Ti Tou Gorge with Ken’s Hinterland Adventure Tours – Dominica
7. Sadie Cove Wilderness Lodge – Kachemak Bay State Park, Alaska
8. Volcano Trekking at Gunung Batur – Gunung Batur, Bali
9. Strokkur Geyser – Geysir Center, Iceland
10. Canopy Tour – Quepos, Costa Rica

After going to the website and reviewing the bottom five on the list and reading their descriptions I would like to say that the Canopy Tour (#10) would have to be my favorite eco-friendly spot so far. It seems surreal. Plus I’ve never been to Costa Rica but I hear it’s fabulous.

My second favorite in the bottom 5 would have to be the Sadie Cove Wilderness Lodge. The owner built the lodge out of driftwood. There had to have been numerous amounts of hard work. These places range throughout our whole planet. It is nice to see that just because we are on vacation, doesn’t mean that we have to waste energy and resources!

These bottom five are places that seem eco-friendly as well. Alaska, Iceland, Costa Rica, Bali, and the Dominica are places where wilderness and land thrives. Whereas most of the United States we are surrounded by buildings and roads. Not all of the U.S. but some.

Top 5 coming soon!

Bling Bling

By surfing the web I’ve found numerous ideas and products that are eco-friendly. With the ease of finding these materials it makes me wonder why we are not using them more. Eco-friendly products don’t just have to be products that we need. I’m talking about the things we need like cleaning products or food. Both of these things we need.

Recently I heard of a couple that got engaged. Her ring is considered eco-friendly. Jewelry is a luxury item. I’m excited that even luxury items are becoming eco-friendly. Some cars have been eco-friendly for a while now but jewelry is the next step.

You might wonder how they do this. On way is through recycling gold. Here’s a quote from the website:

“While gold is valuable enough to provide an incentive to recycle, significant
amounts of gold sit idle, while mining continues at a pace of 2,500 tons a year.
In fact, there is enough gold above ground (already mined) to satisfy all
demands of the jewelry industry for the next 50 years. Much of it sits in bank
vaults and in the form of old and unused jewelry.”

You can even donate your old rings to help create new rings for you or for someone else.

School Ties

There are plenty of students who are proud of their college or university. I am extremely proud of Florida Gulf Coast University for being such an eco-friendly campus. There are four hundred acres of the main campus that are set aside for environmental preservation.

Not only do we save the land we try to build the campus up instead of out. From parking garages to the roof on most of our buildings we keep the environment in mind. Our bridges that connect the parking lots to the buildings, so that we don’t disrupt the wildlife and forest are made from natural wood that lasts a long time.

FGCU also has a Restoration Coordination Team that helps the Big Cypress Watersheds


In 2003 there were talks about a whole building dedicated to the environment. Talked about in this press release.

I know there are numerous other ideas that the University partakes in to help our campus be successful in making the environment here in Southwest Florida cleaner.

One issue that the university needs to work on is the students being environmentally savvy as well. One problem that I see and I know a few others notice too is that students love to hand out flyers and papers. For being an environmentally conscious university you would think students would know better than to waste paper. The event or point they are trying to get across can be done through email or perhaps a banner in a popular place on campus.

"Bee"-ing environmentally aware

I’m sure this post will appeal to the masses of people that use lip gloss. Serious lip gloss consumers know that Burt’s Bees is one of the best makers of chapstick/lipgloss around. In a recent article in the NY Times was the history of Burt’s Bees and where it is going today.
Burt’s Bees is now a part of the Clorox company. Yep. That’s right. Bleach! Apparently a lot of consumers of the lip balm are outraged at the thought of this. Clorox has been critized for a while now by environmentalists who claim that bleach harms the environment when it gets put down city sewers and etc. Clorox is saying that “95 to 98 percent of its bleach breaks into salt and water and that the remaining byproduct is safe for sewer systems” That was stated in the article linked above.

The article also states that Clorox is going to come out and develop some eco-friendly products as well.

It’s great to see that merging together two companies can be better for the evinronment. This relationship will be better for both parties. And all the Burt’s Bees lovers out there shouldn’t stop buying lip balm just because of the merge

If you’re at all interested go and read the article. The title is what caught my eye.

Paper or Plastic? Or should I say Pollution or..uh... Pollution?

That is a great question. The answer is neither says Oprah. (I promise I will quit promoting Oprah for a while after this post.) Ecobags are now in high style when it comes to grocery shopping. Instead of using paper or plastic you should bring your own bags that you can wash and reuse every time to go pick up some food.

Their bags are made from certified organic cotton, recycled cotton, hemp and hemp-cotton blends and natural untreated and unbleached cotton as well as other natural, renewable fiber products and sturdy reusable source goods. Sounds like a good idea to me.

I know other countries have started to use these eco-friendly shopping bags long before we had the idea to use them in the U.S. I believe one of the countries was Australia. The particular website above started their company in 1989. That seems like a very long time ago to me. I cannot believe we were starting this trend so long ago. What a shame it is that it is just becoming more widespread now because now we are really in trouble with our global warming, climate change, and everything else we are doing to destroy our planet.

Devil's Advocate

Just because I am a huge follower of this Oprah phenomenon of making the world a better place to live doesn’t mean I don’t disagree with some of the ideas on the show. I really disagree with http://www.greendimes.com/. Matt Damon, a movie star, was the one who came on the Oprah show to promote the website. I do believe that stopping junk mail and planting trees, which is what the website is about will help our planet but I do not think we should pay for it.

To start, the cost is $20. Not that I am against paying a little bit of money for our environment but I feel like we shouldn’t have to pay for this service type of service. There are plenty of websites that you can go to and click on that will planet a tree for free. This website will planet 500 sq. feet free in your name for registering for free.

Another issue I have is stopping the junk mail. I discontinued getting bank statements in the mail and I now receive them electronically. This saves a lot of trees and it costs me nothing. The email statements also save the company money and it was so simple. I use Bank of America and I know they do this service for Debit cards, Credit Cards, and my Savings Account.So if you want to start simple I would suggest going through your electronic billing for credit cards or banks and see if they offer to stop mailing you statements and for you to receive them electronically. I bet you’ll feel better if you know you’re helping our environment.

Light Up My Life!

There are a few more ideas on that Oprah show that I wanted to share. The GE energy efficient light bulbs will not only help save the environment but they will help your wallet as well. Here’s a description from Oprah’s website:

"GE Energy Smart lightbulbsGE Energy Smart bulbs use 70 to 75 percent less energy than incandescent lightbulbs and last up to 10 times longer than incandescent bulbs. For example, by using a 26-watt compact fluorescent lightbulb—equivalent to a 100-watt incandescent lightbulb—users can save up to $59 on energy costs over the life of the bulb. Saving energy saves money and is better for the environment."

For a complete list of energy saving and eco-friendly idea’s go here.

Just changing one single light bulb will help. This almost seems unreal. I do not understand why everyone is not going out and buying at least one. It benefits everyone and the environment. My mother just told me that Lowe’s was doing a sale on these light bulbs and that they were selling them for 98 cents! That is ridiculous. This light bulb idea seems like a good idea to me. If you are unsure you should just try it. I need to save a few dollars on my electricity bill so I’m definitely going to try it too.

"O"

There are numerous people out there, mostly women, who look to one higher power for advice in love, life, money, health, and almost everything else there is to imagine in life. That higher power would be Oprah. She is definitely a leader and has millions of followers. So, being the follower that I am, watched her show on Going Green and decided to go green myself.



The show introduced a whole new world of cleaning products for me to use that would make my house clean. Interestingly enough every single one of these products has no scent. Scent doesn’t mean clean. The smell of nothing means clean. This interested me. For all of my 21 years of living, 18 of those under my parent’s roof, I’ve come accustomed to smelling a fresh scent of Pine Sol or Mr. clean and mentally becoming satisfied living in a “clean” area. Now I realize that the “clean” scent isn’t very clean anymore!

I’m tempted to try an organic cleaning product. I would also like to try some rewashable towels or cleaning tools as well. One’s that I can reuse over and over again and not have to throw away like I do with paper towels when I am cleaning the mirrors.

I hope Oprah has made a few more followers than just me. Somehow I believe she has.

Help...

…is what planet earth is saying to her residents. As consumers and almost infesters of this planet we are not doing a very good job at keeping it clean. We now actually have to deal with the issue of climate change.

Here is an article that was just recently posted on the Voice Of America (VOA) website from the Red Cross. Who wouldn’t know more about the effects of climate change then the Red Cross? The Red Cross are the ones actually going and helping people who suffered from the natural disasters that climate change caused.

Here’s a great quote from the article:
“…changes in temperature and rainfall are expected to seriously damage agriculture in future years. And, increased temperatures, he says, are resulting in the appearance of diseases like dengue and malaria in new areas…” says Red Cross Secretary-General, Markku Niskala.
I understand what is going on with the climate and can see the results of climate change here in Southwest Florida. The weatherman on our TV’s cannot stop commenting on how warm it is here for January. So I suppose a question to pose here would be: What is making the climate change so much? And also, what can we do to help this situation? These will be issues I am more than willing to address in upcoming posts.

The Color is Green

Green is my favorite color. It is also the color of the grass, trees, plants, and insects. Green is the color of life and I'd like to keep it that way.