Prompt: Blogger In A Strange Land

#Blogging101 Prompt     I just had to say something!

Styrofoam I pulled out of lakes breaking into small pieces
Styrofoam I pulled out of lakes breaking into small pieces

This past January when I was visiting one of the most beautiful places on earth, the Caribbean, I observed litter that upset me. Yes, I am obsessed with litter and clean water.  Litter along waterways is unacceptable.  The shock was that some local restaurants only served their food in Styrofoam boxes. The Styrofoam boxes were littering the street gutters and shoreline.  I wanted no part of this Styrofoam disaster, and searched for food on real plates.  Often they had to wash plates just for us.

Trash in the Caribbean
Trash in the Caribbean

Why does this upset me? Styrofoam breaks into tiny pieces and no one knows how long it will last in our oceans, maybe forever.  Not good for sea life or ocean health. Styrofoam can be recycled, but it is very hard to find. Manufacturers of Styrofoam as well as Coca-Cola and plastic bottle industry should recycle the harmful products they produce, and we should all avoid Styrofoam and plastic bottles as much as possible.

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Zero Waste, Is it Possible?

Bulk purchasing exactly the amount needed for zerowaste
Bulk purchasing exactly the amount needed for zero waste

I have just spent the morning in a seminar learning about the new organic compost program in Minneapolis. With an obsession for reducing trash I work on this daily, but just can’t see how to get to zero waste. We purchase in bulk using compostable paper bags, and refill every bottle with items that are available.
One woman, Bea Johnson, has been able to accomplish zero waste. What is the most amazing of all, she and her husband have two sons!

Here are Bea Johnson’s 10 easy steps to zero waste living:

Some co-ops have fabulous selections of soaps and lotions for bottle refills.
Some co-ops have fabulous selections of soaps and lotions for bottle refills.

Refuse

  1. Fight junk mail. It’s not just a waste of resources, but also of time. Register to receive less at org,optoutprescreen.org and catalogchoice.org.
  2. Turn down freebies from conferences, fairs and parties. Every time you take one, you create a demand to make more. Do you really need another “free” pen?

Reduce

  1. Declutter your home, and donate to your local thrift shop. You’ll lighten your load and make precious resources available to those looking to buy secondhand.
  2. Reduce your shopping trips and keep a shopping list. The less you bring home, the less waste you’ll have to deal with.

Reuse

  1. Swap disposables for reusables (start using handkerchiefs, refillable bottles, shopping totes, cloth napkins, rags, etc.). You might find that you don’t miss your paper towels, but rather enjoy the savings
  2. Avoid grocery shopping waste: Bring reusable totes, cloth bags (for bulk aisles), and jars (for wet items like cheese and deli foods) to the store and farmers market.

Recycle

  1. Know your city’s recycling policies and locations—but think of recycling as a last resort. Have you refused, reduced or reused first? Question the need and life-cycle of your purchases. Shopping is voting.
  2. Buy primarily in bulk or secondhand, but if you must buy new, choose glass, metal or cardboard.Avoid plastic: Much of it gets shipped across the world for recycling and often ends up in the landfill (or worse yet, the ocean).

Rot

  1. Find a compost system that works for your home and get to know what it will digest (dryer lint, hair, and nails are all compostable).
  • Turn your home kitchen trash can into one large compost receptacle. The bigger the compost receptacle, the more likely you’ll be to use it freely.

http://ecowatch.com/2015/03/10/bea-johnsoon-zero-waste-guru/

What do you do to reduce your waste?

It’s the Only Water We Will Ever Have!

Do we take our drinkable water for granted?
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wpid-wp-1416885608659.jpegThe water we have here on earth is the ONLY water we will ever have! Our water moves through the incredible water cycle by evaporating, and then returning to earth in some form of precipitation. We reuse, reuse and reuse the same water. I have gratitude that, my state, Minnesota is a water rich state.  Unfortunately, even in proud Minnesota we don’t take care of our water.

Seelink: http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/health/295353031.html    Streams and lakes in southwest Minnesota unsafe for fish and swimming

If this is the only water we will ever have on earth, shouldn’t we treat it better?  What we do on the land affects what happens in our water. Rain through polluted air brings those chemicals into our water bodies. Rain washes chemicals off our houses, lawns, sidewalks and fields into our rivers and lakes. Micro-beads and triclosan from our cosmetics and cleaning products wash into our waters. Litter from landscapes and streets and highways can find it’s way into our streams, lakes and oceans. Our water does have some ability to clean itself, but with the amounts of pollutants we put into it, it has become impossible! It is very expensive to clean polluted water and impossible to remove plastics and Styrofoam. What can we all do to ensure clean water?  If we all work together we can make a difference.

Easy ways to protect our water:

* Never litter,  pick up litter, and all waste from your dogs.

* Never put salt on your sidewalks

* Don’t put chemicals on your yard or plants.  Reduce the size of your lawn with a few easy to raise native plants.

* Never use Styrofoam and recycle all plastic, paper, cans and glass.

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Do Not Use the Chemical Triclosan

What Products Contain Microbeads?

Our Living Beautiful Oceans

 

The Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea

I love lakes, I love rivers and I love the ocean.  This blog from the point of the view of the sea and tide shows a deep appreciation of the ocean and made me happy. It is so real.   I worry about the way we are taking care of our all water bodies, and feel hope when others think about how important and unique our oceans are to all of us.  I think you will like it also:

https://smallthingsmakeabigchange.wordpress.com/2015/03/12/sea-and-a-tide/

 

My Toast to Women

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In celebration of International Women’s Day, I make a toast to some of the women I think are our best role models. Angela Merkel, Elizabeth Warren, Arianna Huffington, Michelle Obama, Gwen Ifill and Judy Woodruff rank among my top choices.  They educate and care about how the world functions. They know that we all must to work together to find the best solutions possible.

Let’s look beyond ideology, power and money. Look to the women of the world for ideas, and new solutions for our world’s problems.

When girls are educated, their future children are healthier and better nourished” —President Obama:

18290_846385088761470_657816334823573546_nWho would you add to my list, and why?479715_844852902248022_9171346449218983255_n

Who Do You Trust?

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Why do we pick and choose what to believe?

The PBS News Hour did an interesting segment on what Americans believe about GMOs, vaccines and climate change. I hope you will watch. See below.

Because the world is complicated, it is impossible to be an experts on all topics. We need to accept the opinions and facts of someone, and we need sources that we can trust and sources that  reliable.   How do we determine who to believe?

Our brains try to make sense of a complicated world. Is the simplest explanation the one that we like? What role do our friends, family and religion play in our interpretations? Do Rush Limbaugh or Mike Huckabee know more about science than Bill Nye, the science guy?

I think we believe the explanation that best fits into the paradigm of our view of the world. We want ideas that are simple and easy to understand,  We want ideas that don’t limit our freedom or cost us money.

Whose ideas do you trust? This is a fascinating discussion on what the public and scientists believe about climate change, vaccines and GMO products.

The PBS segment follows:

**     http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/pick-choose-science-believe/

A new science check site: http://www.factcheck.org/scicheck/

http://www.mediaite.com/tv/bill-nye-on-maher-lets-be-honest-climate-skeptics-are-just-deniers/

Below link: Scientist paid by the fossil fuel industry to raise scientific doubt

http://ecowatch.com/2015/02/23/climate-deniers-funding-fossil-fuel-industry/?utm_source=EcoWatch+List&utm_campaign=81e2961c16-Top_News_2_23_2015&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_49c7d43dc9-81e2961c16-85912169

http://www.factcheck.org/2015/01/distorting-climate-change-threats-solutions/

http://www.politifact.com/punditfact/article/2015/feb/26/50-fox-news-lies-6-seconds-daily-show/

Advice from our Grandmothers

This is a marvelous post from Mother Nature Network. We all can simplify our lives and be easier on the earth. Our grandmother’s reused, reused and reused. They cooked from scratch, tended gardens and ate real food. I loved my grandparents grass-fed roast beef on Sundays, the marvelous cheese from their cows, and yes, those molasses cookies!
The chickens and the apple orchard were in the back yard. Real plates, cloth napkins, homemade food and family time were all we knew, and there was very little trash or waste618482main_earth1600_800-600.

http://www.mnn.com/lifestyle/responsible-living/stories/10-habits-you-should-pick-up-from-your-grandmother

Looking for Love?

Need a new love? Looking for passion? wpid-wp-1423799335727.jpeg

Show compassion and become passionate about our earth.  Valentines Day 2015 lets show just a little more love for the earth that nourishes and supports us and everything living thing.

My suggestions for Loving the Earth today and tomorrow and forever.

Reduce your plastic use and always bring reusable shopping bags

Recycle, Recycle and Recycle some more

Turn off lights and electronics

Buy Less and reuse what you have

Pick Up trash and litter. Any loose litter can end up in streams, lakes and oceans

Walk and use public transit.  How many days can you go without a car?

Appreciate the beauty of the earth

Plant seeds of milkweed, cone flowers, bee balm, asters, and Liatris to bring butterflies birds and bees to your yard.  And never use chemicals.

Happy Valentines Day