Sunday, June 29, 2014
Get Rid of Pests and Weeds the Chemical-Free Way
Today is a beautiful day in the Midwest. It has been very rainy on and off this last week which God knows the corn needed but the rest of us not so much. I am thinking about getting out into the garden so on that note I have decided this would be my last post from this site. I personally used to use smidges of garlic, crushed red pepper, a drop of dish soap and the rest all water. Today though, I am just going to drop the dish soap aspect. I am fairly positive that just the garlic and crushed red pepper will do enough. I mean they really get to me when I am making it and I am a thousand million times more ginourmous than a bug. If anyone had any better ideas I am open to suggestion. Good luck and enjoy this beautiful day. Get Rid of Pests and Weeds the Chemical-Free Way
Vote with Your Fork - What Are Healthy Foods Really?
I like this article and I clearly love and respect this website. I think today as we try to be healthier and provide real food for our children, we struggle with what is real and safe and what is not so much more. Some food for thought I guess, lollll To much? To much? ;)
Vote with Your Fork
Vote with Your Fork
Warren Buffett: West Coast Superhero
I have a deep respect for this man. He is sensible and able to see the faults in our energy and economic models, if more people in his position were as realistic and dedicated to the future as he is we would all be in a lot better shape. Plus a bonus for all your capitalists out there, HE MAKES MONEY DOING IT!! Going green is profitable, anything is profitable if you make it so.
Warren Buffett: West Coast Superhero
Warren Buffett: West Coast Superhero
Nuke-Leak Probe Focuses on Los Alamos National Lab
Why isn't the government taking better care of these facilities!!! They are housing our nuclear waste for pete's sake!!
Nuke-Leak Probe Focuses on Los Alamos National Lab
Nuke-Leak Probe Focuses on Los Alamos National Lab
Saturday, June 28, 2014
Ever wonder just how much more #BADBUSINESS is making than you??
Well this should give you a good idea...
IKEA to raise minimum wage!!!
Cheers!! To Ikea for recognizing they needed to make a change to help their employees and their customers alike!
Raising the minimum wage is possible! Please see where some of the money can come from below and you can read the full article in my next post... Thank you and stay positive, change can be slow but I have to believe it's possible!! :)
Friday, June 27, 2014
Day One
So today I begin my quest not to buy any clothes or accessories for myself for 90 days. I have also added an amendment that when I buy things for other people or my home I will do my best to buy: 1) locally 2) repurposed/used 3) Buy them a service or experience so that both of us will create memories instead of waste... Wow! I'm cheesy! ;)
*But seriously though - the best memories I have are of an experience not a thing - that has to say somethin'!
Anyway, day one has proved to be increasingly difficult. I missed an attempt to eat at home by rushing around crazy and confused as usual when I left. Will have to work on that. Going to make up for this by eating at a private establishment and hoping for the best??? Then I started getting in the car to drive myself to the post office - a block away people!! Lazy wears a purple tank top and says what -whaaaat?!? Thankfully I got my lazy arse out of my car and walked. Calories lost, energy saved oh yeahhh!! But then, dear God then - I got in my car and didn't have sunglasses. The urge to buy new sunglasses at someplace cheap that probably produces via child labor and tons of toxic waste was strong within me!! I will fight it!! I am always complaining about how my job keeps me out of the sun all day and I never get enough sun on my face and here is an oppurtunity to be all naturaaallll and I am ready to buy .99 sunglasses. Saved money and waste and the environment in one small decision!! I will not contribute!! Okay enough crazy talk - real talk today I have to get a gift for my BCBFF (best cousin best friend foreva) Angie. She just got her first apartment. I have decided to take them out with me to said private food establishment instead of buying a gift card or an item. Hope they enjoy, more to come!!
Thursday, June 26, 2014
Library
Thinking about hitting up the library tomorrow, I found this very nice quote and am going to look up the author. His brief info is also below:
Cleaning out my closet...
This is actually from a money saving site but the concept is the same and it majes me feel like double a milkion times better to know I'm saving money and doing my part!!! :-)
http://www.fabulouslybroke.com/2012/07/10-wasteful-practices-you-should-stop-today/
Local Business making advancemenrs in Electronic Recycling!
http://www.vintagetechrecyclers.com/about_us/
Something I missed that my county did on Earth dsy to help because I wasn't interested / looking...
http://www.theherald-news.com/2014/04/18/stadalsky-earth-day-seems-like-a-good-day-to-do-some-spring-cleaning/aq8qyan/?__xsl=/print.xsl
Plastic and paper drop off locations, Will County
http://www.willcountygreen.com/greenguide/recycle_drop_offs.aspx 
Recycling in Plainfield IL
http://plainfield.patch.com/groups/politics-and-elections/p/recycle-b4b6b3ec
Knowledge is empowering!
I hope to leave my children with the opportunity to find even more of the heavens. :)
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Hopefully something positive comes of this...
http://www.earth911.com/breaking-news/uk-wins-grant-limit-impact-waste-sites/
Yum!!!
Steve and I went to the market today and made smoothies! Yuuummm!! Please these are the adult version, oh yeah!!
Spring Cleaning
Cleaning out my closet today and I realized .... I have entirely to much crap!! Dear Lord! Good opportunity though. I am collecting some items I will never use to sell at my mom's next garage sale. I am refinding (made up word?) and re enjoying clothes and Items I forgot I had. Have you ever done this... You can't find something and it annoys you so you just buy another one? Well, apparently so do I and I need to stop. Why do I have six dog leashes for two dogs who live mostly in our fenced in yard? Why do I have so many tank tops? I used to work at a company where we wore a uniform everyday and I live in Illinois where there is only 6-8 weeks of Summer...
Anyhoo, other ways this was a good learning experience - I found an old curling iron and it doesn't work. So according to my be more conscious vow I looked around and found this handy article from Earth911. We actually scrap a lot because of Steve's job and I am looking forward to getting rid of this in a more efficient way. More to come on my adventures in cleaning!!
Energy programs in Illinois
These are great and interesting, wish they had more options for the individual as opposed to other government recognized groups. It is my firm belief that individuals are where we need to start in this change, we need to think small. People are willing to help if we provide them with the right tools and information.
Using our waste big and small
One thing that really gets me about waste particularly building material waste, is how many abondoned buildings we have in the US that we aren't repurposing. We sometimes can have this view that if we didn't build to suite it won't work for us. Would it not be cheaper if we tried renovating more and tearing down less? I don't know to be honest, what do you think? I think the government should be using these huge abandoned structures to create energy by fitting them with temp solar panels in the time they are out of use or using them in another way like greenhousing... Thoughts?
Solar Panels... Is silicone the only option?
Good article, apparently we are making advancements away from expensive silicon. The industry producing silicon is largely based in China. Wouldn't it be awesome if we could move that market back to the states? Just a thought...
Solar panels, why are they so expensive?
I often wonder to myself if solar panels are a viable energy option... They are made out of silicone which is man made product and they are extremely expensive even after government subsidizing which can negatively effect price in a market. Some information for you all to come up with your own decision...
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Plant based plastic research ...
Pretty interesting article on the future of research in plant based plastics...
Milk... It does the body good
Steve and I are trying to drink milk more consciously, that being said has anyone tried Oberweis? They give you 1.50 toward you next bottle with your return... Healthier and a good deal!! 
Monday, June 23, 2014
Robbed Again…
This is a great article about a young girl who made a change for the better of us all and it's told in a hilarious way through this funny man right here. Love that this girl was so dedicated to her health at such a young age!! Super isnpired that she made one of the largest distributors of carboniated beverages make a change for the betttaaaaa!! Whoop whoop you go girl! This site is awesome btw, highly suggest! :)
Robbed Again…
Robbed Again…
WHO IS BURNING THEIR GARBAGE FOR ENERGY IN THE UNITED STATES??
We need to change the way we think and stop filling landfills with garbage that can be repurposed and turned into energy our greatest necessity!!
http://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.cfm?id=7990
http://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.cfm?id=7990
Nuclear Waste Clean Up
Of course we are not looking into this, it could be difficult and expensive. But it WILL also eventually kill us all... ;(
http://www.usnews.com/science/articles/2009/11/06/why-cant-we-neutralize-nuclear-waste#
Is burning garbage green? In Sweden, there’s little debate | Midwest Energy News
Is burning garbage green? In Sweden, there’s little debate | Midwest Energy News
Not only could we be destroying our garbage in a way that produces energy as has been proved by the Swedes and thankfully they have so kindly done the research for us, but we could also be selling some of our garbage to them instead of shipping huge containers of it back to different places to be resold to us in unhealthy ways...
Not only could we be destroying our garbage in a way that produces energy as has been proved by the Swedes and thankfully they have so kindly done the research for us, but we could also be selling some of our garbage to them instead of shipping huge containers of it back to different places to be resold to us in unhealthy ways...
Sunday, June 22, 2014
If you are interested in Bees... which I am...
http://www.agr.state.il.us/programs/bees/CCD.pdf
This came from the Illinois State Agricultural website. Thought it was actually very realistic and informative... the more you know, the more you grow! Bees are very important, if you don't believe me - google how they pollinate in China or just watch the Bee Movie, duh!
Even Better!! These are made out of all wood, which we actually have lying around the house right now, whoop whoop~ opportunity!
http://ts2.mm.bing.net/th?&id=HN.608020361174254920&w=300&h=300&c=0&pid=1.9&rs=0&p=0
http://backyarddiy.files.wordpress.com/2014/02/wpid-storagesdcard0dcimfacebookimg_4046978561026852.jpg
Sustainability Ideas...
I had no idea that Bonnie Plants company was so invested in sustainability... but then again its just smart thinking when you business is the greeness of the Earth...
Sustainable Energy Production
At our headquarters in Union Springs, a new 62,000 square foot greenhouse is heated through a clean wood-burning process designed by Lee Energy Solutions of Guntersville, Alabama. To create fuel for heat, the system burns wood pellets made from trees harvested locally using sustainable forestry practices. The system then reuses the smoke produced by this burning as a secondary source of fuel, creating a closed loop with minimal byproducts.
http://bonnieplants.com/our-story/the-greener-grower
Ideas...
We could totally do this with just things we have lying around the yard to keep growing through the fall?
New toilet turns human waste into electricity and fertilizer -- ScienceDaily
New toilet turns human waste into electricity and fertilizer -- ScienceDaily
Need one!! This is from two years ago... Has anyone heard if this is moving forward??? Wish I could get money to turn my gas into real gas!! LOL, I know, I know - I'll be here all week. ;)
Need one!! This is from two years ago... Has anyone heard if this is moving forward??? Wish I could get money to turn my gas into real gas!! LOL, I know, I know - I'll be here all week. ;)
What Happens to All That Plastic? – State of the Planet
What Happens to All That Plastic? – State of the Planet
Why aren't we utilizing the most available resource we currently have... our waste??!! We will never stop producing waste and at the rate we are growing and using our natural non renewable resources, we need to start getting creative and using what is available to us to provide us with energy in as healthy a way as possible. We should be re-using all of this... Sad. This is literally money and energy being thrown in the trash...
Why aren't we utilizing the most available resource we currently have... our waste??!! We will never stop producing waste and at the rate we are growing and using our natural non renewable resources, we need to start getting creative and using what is available to us to provide us with energy in as healthy a way as possible. We should be re-using all of this... Sad. This is literally money and energy being thrown in the trash...
Reuse!!!
We are doing our best going forward not to buy new things if we don't have to and to buy used and repurposed whenever we can. We are also a newly engaged couple building a home though and I'm not going to lie, I like many other girls going through the nesting process love buying things for my home and decorating it any way I can. It reflects me and my partner and our lives together and all the hard work we have put into and into life. So now we just have to figure out ways to do that in a cheaper way and one that is more Eco conscious. With all those words... I am trying to say... Steve can across some very nice old wooden chairs that were being thrown away and I am going to reupholster and possibly pain them. Anyone know any good green, Eco friendly paint brands? Suggestions welcome!!
*ps there is a picture of my little doggy Charlie checking out the seen just for your enjoyment* 
Trying something new
Steve and I are trying to conserve water. We live out in the country and our water comes from wells. So we actually have to buy hydrogen peroxide to mix with our water in this super crazy reverse osmosis water system we have or it's full of iron and smells like eggs and you really shouldn't drink it. That being said, it's an incredibly wasteful system. One) we have to buy hydrogen peroxide which is expensive and can't be great for the environment. Two) we have to collect all the plastic containers they give you with the peroxide because it's dangerous and they just end up in our basement because we hate throwing anything away. Three) the system actually expels about half as much water as it pushes out in the process - how dumb right? I know but I'm no scientist so all I can do is try with what I got... Anyhow, once I found out how much water we were wasting I almost threw up!! I immediately asked Steve to start filling the containers we had lying around the basement with the expelled water (which by the way is filtered more through this process than your own drinking water!!) I told him I wanted to use the water to do other things like wash and clean up/ give the dogs ect so my super crafty love went into his basement or garage or wherever he hides all his random crap and found me a spicket and put it on there and now we have it on our counter and we are using water less and being more conscious because this way you can see how much you are actually using. Big and bulky I know but if you saw my kitchen you would know I don't care. I also went to Ecocover soap which is supposed to be plant bottle based and all natural non haz. Still working on the plastic bag situation as you can see lol ;). Start small! Control what you can control and stay positive, we'll get there!!!
Is Recycling Worth It
http://youtu.be/-ljrFzvPz-s
Please watch this link. If company's were smart they would figure out a way to use their own waste and save/grow money while creating jobs in new ways that could potentially be supported by the government for green energy all the while helping it's consumers and the environment and the greatest vendor of all, God's Green Earth. :). #notsayinjustsayin
Don't think people can't help though. This will be a combination of people helping to collect waste and get it back to the supplier for direct reuse and application of energy until the time when the producers have made the systems more efficient. We really have an opportunity to hit a new level of wealth and prosperity if we can figure out how to start using our own waste of which Americans being so blessed already have a ton of. We ship half of what's recycled which is under 10% of what is used back to China so they can selll it to us again anyway. It's nobody's fault it's just an old system and we need to update it to make more jobs here and less waste here.
Thankfully we can learn right away from Germany's mistakes we don't even have to go through the long expensive process of research ourselves. Don't worry guys I'm going to keep learning, promise!! :)
Saturday, June 21, 2014
Food
Homemade sausage and gravy. Per the future husby's request.... Yum! I did like this recipe a lot because you added the flour when you cooked the ground beef, which coated it instead of having to add the flour in multiple times as you cook... Coolio!
And a dessert before dinner...
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