Green Thinking Blog

Last weekend, while we were on our annual camping trip, I was a witness to dragonflies mating on my boyfriend’s leg.  Strange topic, I know.  It was however, the most beautiful thing happening on the river, so beautiful, I have asked him to paint it for our living room wall.  Take a look:

As I am searching for this picture, I came across another blog that is fantastic in its own right and gave me several recommendations of other blogs to check out.  I suggest you do too. 

It can be so hard sometimes, especially for those of us who live day to day in the life of convenience, “Why can’t I use paper plates?” “Why can’t I do a load of laundry for a couple shirts?” etc, etc, etc.

We are creating new habits everyday to contribute to our Earth’s well-being…and that can be hard to do.  It can be hard to defend ourselves also, to those people who just don’t understand.  You’ve been there, I’ve been there, we’ve all been there; but our response is that we are dedicated to our earth, that our actions are actually helping everyone on this planet, and even if it hard in the moment - it is worth it at the end of the day.

So, as I had said, I was searching the net for a picture of dragonflies…doing it…and I came across the blog, “A Passion for Nature:  WinterWoman’s Observation of a Natural World.” WinterWoman is a naturalist and a director at the Audobon Center in western New York.  Her writings have a very genuine, “day-in-the-life” feel to them & are accompanied by beautifulpictures of nature.  Her photos are the kind that help you remember why you are creating those eco-friendly habits.

On her blog, WinterWoman includes several blogs that she reads on a daily basis- and now that I know about them, I might too.

The Morning Porch:  A blog that provides a description, in 140 characters or less, what is taking place visually & audibly from the author’s front porch each morning.

Body Soul and Spirit:  This blog not only visits different parts of nature, but also offers cultural and spiritual insight.

One of my favorites: Nature Remains.  This blog is poetry.  It is lyrical verse about the world around us.  If you go to this site & aren’t inspired to write a 15,000 word essay on why we are creating our eco-friendly habits - call me & we will have a consultation to get back on track!

Check out the June 1st edition of All Things Eco Blog Carnival at Focus Organic!

Besides featuring GTB’s article: “12 Year Olds Really do Make a Difference,” there are some great resources about saving your dollars to be green.

My Mom told me about this new website, GoodGuide.com. It rates green, natural, and healthy products on a 0-10 scale (0 is the worst and 10 is the best). You can learn more about the rating system here.

I’m happy to find out about this website, because it can be hard to make informed decisions on green products when there are so many options and a slew of confusing labels.

Good Guide rates all kinds of products including personal care, household chemicals, toys, and food. For the food items, I’m going to compare it with another nutritional scoring system that I’m a big fan of, NuVal™.

Let us know what you think of Good Guide. I can’t wait to check into some of the personal care items so I can find the best makeup,  skin care, and hair products to try out.

Vocabulary word of the day:

Grue.

The word has several meanings, as any word generally does, but there is one in particular I found interesting.

Grue, in the Welsh language, is a term that is used for both the color “blue” & the color “green.”  The language does not distinguish between the two colors.

I found this particularly interesting because a new era is being referred to as being “green” (meaning eco-friendly).  This concept could be lost to some cultures simply because they don’t have the words to describe the movement.

This weekend was our annual camping trip about 2 hours north of Orlando, FL.  It is always fun when we reunite with friends we haven’t seen in a long time!  We float down a beautiful river with our cooler full of beverages, and we get to see beautiful natural springs and wildlife of all kinds.

It is the perfect weekend to unwind, relax, and really enjoy what Mother Nature provides us.  That is, until you see the trends of other campers who may not share the same sentiment.

Here is the list my camping partner & I came up with as the top 5 things that you should not do while you are camping.  Of course, this list only pertains  if you want the earth to be around for your children’s children…

1.  Paper plates, cups, cutlery, and 48 bottles of water.

This tactic is a mainstream idea for campers of our generation.  It speaks to today’s world of convenience.   While I understand the logic and ease behind it, a two day trip could easily contribute to 50 pounds+ of garbage in a landfill.

2.  Batteries that are discarded on the ground.

Believe me, even this is not a mainstream idea for campers of convenience.  This was something witnessed as someone’s laziness for proper disposal.  It could have even happened as an accident from years ago, but the implications battery acid could have on our land, seeping into our waters, and feeding our wildlife is devastating.

3.  Crazy squirrels.

The squirrels have grown accustomed to ravaging through campers’ sites to have their meals.  While we cannot account for their habits and unconventional scavenger techniques, we can be conscious of where we place our bread.  The moral of this point is:  Don’t feed the animals.  They get used to it, and then are unable to fend for themselves or eat a diet that works for their digestive system.  (Not to mention make them crazy, ravenous beasts, that will attack and feed on anything not theirs - including plastic bags and backpacks - it wasn’t really a fun experience for those parties involved)

4.  Campfires that consist of more than wood.

Contrary to some beliefs…Aluminum, plastic, and anything living is not fuel for the fire.  It is not wise to place those chemicals into the air we breath.  Nor is it advisable to cut down a living tree to put it in the fire.  Not only does that kill the tree, but you don’t have a successful fire. 

5.  Not Abiding by this rule: “Don’t Trash where you Splash”

This one is so true.  The facility allows for and encourages coolers, beverages, and anything else consumable be brought down the river for your journey.  What is not encouraged, however, is emptying your cooler into the river to create a floating trash heap of bottles and garbage to rival the mysterious plastic mass in the Pacific Ocean.

That concludes the list of things to NOT practice while camping.  If you are new to camping, it can be a wonderful experience, but remember, you are a guest in Mother Nature’s house - and you should definitely leave it the way you found it.  What you pack in, you pack out.

If you should need some further ideas on eco-friendly camping, be sure to check out our post “Ah! The Great Outdoors.”

I’ve come across a little story with some pretty cool merchandise available. 

HotChicksReycle.com is a merchandise company that was started by Alessa, age 12.  Along with help of her sisters, their company has the goal to help everyone realize the importance of recycling.   To achieve this goal, they have designed a line of t-shirts, reusable totes, and reusable water bottles with artwork designed by themselves to send a message. 

I just love seeing little people realizing their potential to save the world at a young age!

This morning I wrote about a new independent film called “FRESH” on my health food blog. I thought our Green Thinking Readers would be interested too.

I recently heard about a new independent film called FRESH while I was up in school in NYC. I had a chance to see the trailer and wanted to share it with you. FRESH features “farmers, thinkers, and business people” in the U.S. who are making positive changes in our industrialized food system. Some of the main characters include urban and sustainable farmers and supermarket owners.

Check out the trailer at the FRESH website: www.FRESHthemovie.com

I’m a Florida girl, and so far there are zero screenings of the movie in my state. But, I’d love to see it. If you want to host a screening in your home town, you can fill out a request here.

Dear readers, we apologize for the delay in posts.  The April sun has brought out May showers and with it a mini-hibernation from GTB. 

Good things that have come in the last couple of weeks is the kick off of Green Cities Florida, an educational event being held at the Orange County Convention Center, here in Orlando, FL.  This event not only featured key speakers that can help with any green certifications, but it hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony for the convention center’s solar array unveiling.

The $8.8 million project features a 1.1MW solar panel system that will greatly reduce the impact the energy output from the conventions that take place.  There is also an on-site education center where visitors can monitor the system.

Another Orlando community, Baldwin Park, recently hosted their own green festival, Green Fest at Baldwin Park.  This block party featured live music, food, and special appearances from Mayor Buddy Dyer & Congress Representatives. 

We sampled some delicious organic & vegan cuisine by Joe’s Oat Patties.  Using a special packet including spices and oats there are several recipes to be made from Joe’s Oat Patties, including Joe’s Oat Patties Quinoa Garden Salad & Joe’s Oat Patties Corn Bread Stuffing and Portobello Mushroom Vegan Gravy. mmmm

As you can see, there is a lot happening here, but Laurel & I will be back to our regularly scheduled posts starting immediately.

Thank you for continuing to think green!

The Parade of Homes has recently kicked off in my & Laurel’s city of Orlando.  Running from May 3-17, six of the 70 homes showcased this year are totally green!  Not only that, dozens have green features! 

This is fantastic, because it means green is no longer a trend - it is here to stay & be integrated into home building for years to come!

The Parade of Homes boasts Orlando’s first LEED-gold certified home in Winter Park.  This is the second of level of three for the certification, and there are only 8 homes throughout Florida that have acheived the gold seal.  It is currently listed for sale if you are in the market…If I had a budget of $1,375,000 I would probably bite.

The Sage at Winter Park is slated to be Florida’s first green-certified community featuring 72 units that will be 15% more energy efficient than the standard home.  The townhomes will use gas stoves, tankkless water heaters, and have a circuit specifically for charging electric cars.

Orlando Sentinel, May 1, 2009, Section D.

Laurel & I have a mutual friend, Lauren, who has recently found a cause she is fighting for. 

As you know from our previous posts, The Locks are Gone! Sent with Love. and Time for a Haircut?! Give it Up! I had donated 12 inches of long flowing hair to the fantastic organization Locks of Love. 

Lauren has not only donated her hair once, for those children who do not have any due to illness, she has grown it out 2 times!  That is over 2 feet of hair - and at least 3 years to grow it!

She has now found a new cause that you could help with.  Inspired by an informational meeting she attended for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, she couldn’t help but sign up to run a 1/2 marathon to support finding a cure for this cancerous blood disease. 

Lauren couldn’t tell you the last time she was able to run a mile & she will have a lot of training to do to run 13.1 in October!  Besides that, she also has to raise nearly $4,000.  This is where you can come in.

Visit her official Team-In-Training website to help her reach a goal & help those people who suffer from this disease at http://pages.teamintraining.org/ntx/nikesf09/lwatanafie.

You have to admit, it is an inspiration when something moves you enough to reach personal goals- goals that go beyond yourself are epic.

Thanks for reading!  and Thanks in advance for your support!