Archive for June, 2005
June 30th, 2005 - ReusableBags.com
Found some interesting items I’d love to purchase at Reusable Bags: Sandwich “Bags” and Reusable Mesh Produce Bags (I actually do reuse my produce bags for kitty litter, but I don’t need as many as we get!). I already have cotton tote bags I try to remember to use–all from conferences!
June 29th, 2005 - How does your garden grow?
Failures: One type of lettuce, basil, chickpeas: Absolutely nothing sprouted. Corn: Out of 3 3′ rows, I have maybe 6 plants. I don’t think this is enough to pollinate so probably a failure. Tomatoes and peppers: Came in horrible condition and are barely 10 inches tall (T) or 5 in (P). Not sure if they will produce. Cherry tomatoes haven’t grown much since transplanting. Not sure about cabbage–one was eaten by slugs before I noticed and the others are still small. Spinach: only a few sprouted; hoping they will grow big.
Successes so far: We’ve been eating salad for the last week! Woohoo to the 2 lettuces that did grow, onions, and violas! Potato plants are 2′ tall or more and still growing. Squash, pumpkins, cabbage, carrots, and zinnias are growing steadily. The three tomatoes I didn’t have room for and stuck in a very shady area are doing better than the regular ones (I’m thinking this might be a place to extend the garden and give me about 12 sq ft extra).
In other areas: Currants are coming in (hope they riped before we leave on a 10-day vacation next week). Cannas aren’t doing well–out of 20 or so, only three have grown :(. My Siberian iris bought on a whim bloomed.
June 28th, 2005 - Diapers
In the eternal debate over cloth versus disposable diapers, there’s another choice in the disposable option that I never heard. I had really wanted to go with cloth, but DH wasn’t too into it. When we had trouble finding ones that fit and were overwhelmed anyway with a new baby, the cloth went out the window. I was terribly disappointed. I wish I’d heard about alternative disposables, such as Seventh Generation’s line, which doesn’t use chlorine to bleach the product white: Now, these are more expensive than regular disposables, but I find it worth it. They are equal in quality to the Target diapers we have been using (with which we never had problems). (By the way, 7th Gen also makes nice wipes.) For people who wish they could use cloth but for whatever reason aren’t able to, this might be a nice alternative. I just wish it had been pointed out to me 6 months ago.
I buy them at my local natural foods store–The Red Radish; they are also available online. (My store gave me a 10% discount for ordering in quantity, which is as few as 2 packages of 38 diapers!)
June 28th, 2005 - MIT Blog survey
June 28th, 2005 - Organic Bouquet
An idea for where to buy next year’s Mother’s Day flowers: OrganicBouquet.com (this particular selection is those that automatically come with a donation to a charitable organization). Couldn’t find shipping prices without creating an account and nearly ordering so not sure how it compares to other sites. The flowers are about the same price, although I usually find a discount of about $10. Or I find flowers under $30 to send.
June 27th, 2005 - Will I become a vegetarian?
The article So You’re an Environmentalist; Why Are You Still Eating Meat? is really making me think. I wonder, however, what the impact of small, family, organic beef farms (like Cattleana Ranch) is.
Next week, we head off on our vacation to Jersey. I’ve been wondering about how I’ll eat out there. Should I avoid meat? Or not bother? How important is it to not eat it if it’s just on principle–the meat will have already been bought whether or not I eat it. It may just get thrown out if I don’t eat my share. I’m just kind of grossed out by non-organic meat right now so I think I’m going to be going the vegetarian route. Unless I go to a organic food store while we’re out there and buy some.
June 24th, 2005 - Tanita Kitchen Scale Solar Powered
When I get around to buying a kitchen scale, I may as well get something like the Tanita Solar Powered Kitchen Scale
June 24th, 2005 - Can’t see links?
The default view for this blog, I discovered this weekend, does not show all the links I put into my posts. To see them, choose a different view. Along the right hand side, scroll down to find the Style selections. I personally prefer Extreme 2. Apologies for not noticing this before. (and, hey! Michael–when are you going to change this default???)
June 24th, 2005 - Back To Basic Hand Mill
The Back To Basics Hand Mill was recommend by Annie Berthold-Bond in The Green Kitchen Handbook. (She’s the author of all those around-the-house recipes I rave about.) Not buying one now, but want to keep this for future reference.
June 24th, 2005 - To shave or not to shave, that is the question
An interesting commentary on shaving and the use of other personal care products (by my favorite columnist, Umbra at Grist Magazine) mentions the possibility of the Ancient Egyptian Art of Body Sugaring. The example is using it on your underarms. I’m not strong enough of heart to try this yet, but you never know. Sounds just like those old Nads commercials, only cheaper!
I stopped shaving my legs over 10 years ago. So that I wouldn’t have to worry about converters, I didn’t bring my electric shaver when I studied abroad in London. (I couldn’t use a razor because I cut the skin on my ankles and knees to pieces.) It was nice to not bother with it for 3 months. I did it once when I got back to MN and then realized what a stupid habit it was. I tried Nair a few times, but hated sitting around with it on for 30-45 minutes (took forever for me) and it was never a perfect job. So I quit. I don’t care if my legs are hairy, why should anyone else? It’s just a stupid American commercially-made desire.
As to makeup, I believe the last time I wore any was to my wedding. I used some lipstick and a little blush. Maybe some foundation. We’re talking pretty light stuff. I still have the three items. I was never, ever into makeup. I’ve work it to a few weddings, formal dances, and job interviews. I’m not sure why I hold on to what I have. When I go past them I always think I ought to keep them just in case. Just in case what???? I suddenly have the desire for lipstick? Like that will ever happen! Maybe I’d wear it for a job interview…but then again, I hate the hassle and it’s not ME so why would I bother? (I still remember a girl in high school in choir class who had put on such thick mascara it looked like she had caterpillers on her eyes. It was so icky. I always wondered why guys liked kissing girls when all they’d get is a lipful of pancake makeup and lipstick. It seemed so yucky.)
I do use hair gel. My slightly-curly hair that goes frizzy and/or straight during the day needs it to look semi-decent. But, as I found a couple weeks ago, I can make my own! woohoo! I’m owed a perm from one that didn’t work out but now I can’t have one–thinking about all those chemicals…I just can’t do it. I am looking forward to Angie giving my cornrows or boxbraids again, however!
June 24th, 2005 - Biking
When will the ride to work get easier? I’ve been biking for a month now and it seems like it’s just as hard as ever. I know I’ve gotten a bit faster, but my thighs are still sore and I get winded easily. Maybe by the end of the summer, when it’s time to go back to walking it will finally get easier….
June 24th, 2005 - Your name in pictures
As Eliza said, from whom I learned about this, totally useless yet kind of cool:
You can get your own name in pictures.
June 15th, 2005 - Weird
I decided to go figure out of the wattage website was valid info. Turns out that just last week I was reading another website this man wrote! What a weird coincidence. (That site was about bicycle safety.)
June 14th, 2005 - Dehydrator arrived!
My dehydrator arrived yesterday. Can’t wait to use it–luckily, I’m taking Thursday and Friday off so I don’t have to wait for the weekend! (Maybe–I might have to wait until the *following weekend. We’re having company and I’m not sure I want to fuss with something new while they are here. We’ll see.)
You can make granola with a dehydrator. I love granola (although I think my fruit bread is cheaper, so I’m trying to eat more of that instead). I was wondering which is uses less enegery–1 hour 15 minutes in the oven or using the dehydtrator. Recipes range from 2-7 hours and my dehydrator is a 500-watt appliance. I managed to find a list of typical wattages for home appliances (no idea whether I should trust the source but they looked about right). It likes an electric oven as 5000 watts. That means that an hour in the oven is equivalent to 10 hours in the dehydrator. (Say, I wonder what temp that oven’s at? Well, granola’s cooked pretty low. But even if the 5000 is for 350 degrees, the granola only takes a few hours in the dehydrator so I think I come out far ahead.) Also, you don’t have to stir it in the dehydrator every 15 minutes–that’s the part I least like about making granola. Hence, I believe I will use the dehydrator!
June 10th, 2005 - Bush and the environment
Would you believe the George W. Bush, “whose administration has gutted environmental protection as though it were a trout, care[s] enough to recycle toilet water in his home?” Strange, but true. (At least, it was true is 2003.)
June 10th, 2005 - If you enjoyed Grocery Store Wars
…you may also enjoy The Meatrix. (I prefer the S’Wars one.)
June 9th, 2005 - Homemade cosmetics
A variety of recipes for lipgloss to bath baths. I wonder if any are in the book I already have? I’m particularly interested in the bathing products.
Another site includes recipes for dandruff control and hair gel both of which I need. (Actually, my dandruff seems to have gone away this winter with the arrival of Maggie. On the other hand, she has cradle cap which often turns into dandruff.) And a thid site has an even longer recipe list.
June 9th, 2005 - Recycle those VHS tapes
Did you ever imagine videotapes could be recycled? According to Grist’s self-help columnist Umbra they can be! By the way, that column has become my latest favorite reading material (online at least).
Just keep clicking next (or previous) to read them all. I have found the majority to contain something I did not know but find useful in my efforts to live a more sustainable, simpler life.
June 7th, 2005 - Dehydrating
I’m planning on buying a dehydrator. This post is to collect some things I’ll want to read again once I have it.
Dept of Ag publication In particular, the jerky info at the bottom has directions for cooking it first. The only ones I’ve found so far.
Jerky info from 3 Men with Nothing Better to Do
Take three parts soy sauce, 1 part brown sugar, 1 part liquid smoke and mix together. Let this stand for five minutes and then add meat.
Tofu jerky (the original recipe!)
“I also have an apple peeler, corer, slicer (hand crank kind that makes spirals.) Cut across one side of the spiral making rings and dip in a cinnamon and sugar mixture and place on trays. These drip quite a bit so I usually skip the first tray and place a napkin or paper towel on it for the first hour or two - then I remove the paper and fill this tray and place it on the very top of the dehydrator. ”
Straw-Apples: Blend one cup apple juice with one package of frozen strawberries. Cover one of the racks with saran-wrap. Pour mixture into rack and dehydrate. Soon you’ll have home made fruit roll ups. If you have any remaining mixture, drink it. It’s yummy!
corn chips These sound GREAT. And I hsould have a lot of corn this summer as I doubt we’ll actually eat all from my garden (I don’t like corn on the cob).
Recipe Czar Many are from “Nesco’s website” although I couldn’t find them on the Nesco site. They sure do sound yummy. I am getting more and more interested in my dehydrator! Being able to make my own crackers is something I’d not thought of before. This is excellent!
More recipes includes a generic fruit rollup recipe
basic directions
June 7th, 2005 - Giving to charity
A perennial issue with living simply is charitable contributions. Here’s what we do. First, let me note that if it were up to me, I’d give 10% of my income to charity, right off the top. However, it’s not up to me so we donate a tiny portion (.2%) of our income to charity.
We chose three charities to which we will donate money on a regular basis. I chose one–the baby charity I work with. Eric chose one–the Oshkosh Area Humane Society, whence came our kitties. And we chose one together–our regional public radio station. We approved each other’s choices, by the way. This decision makes it so much easier to say no to organizations–I can say “I’m sorry, but we’ve already chosen where we will donate to charity this year.” It also means that we don’t have to feel like the other person’s pet cause (no pun intended) gets more money nor do we have to argue for our own. The money is split evenly among the three organizations.
Any other charities–be it Girl Scout’s selling cookies, sponsoring someone on a walk/run, buying fundraiser bracelets, or whatever–comes out of our pockets. (Or, we can choose to spend money from the Household budget, but that’s a joint decision and typically only done when the item is something we would have bought anyway.) We each have a monthly allowance–our spending money. So if I want to spend $100 on the baby charity, I can do so…out of my spending money.
Indeed, I put 10% of my spending money aside for charity each month. In the past, I’ve spend 100s on the babies, but I discovered a new favorite charity–The Elephant Sanctuary (TES) and all my money this year has gone their direction so far. This past winter, I specifically decided to again support an environmental cause. I’ve been a member of the NRDC and The Nature Conservancy in the past. I decided to support either dolphins or elephants. Last fall, I’d read a book by the founder of TES and remembered they had a website. I managed to find it (surprise! type in elephant sanctuary and they are the top hit. Makes sense…but I hadn’t remembered their name.). Now I dream of winning the lottery so that I can give them a million dollars.
Non-monetary giving: We also collect unwanted household goods and clothing throughout the year. Each summer, my parish picnic includes a rummage sale–all the non-clothing items go there. The clothing is given to the St. Vincent de Paul store. All of Maggie’s unused baby clothes and other items went to the baby charity, too. As she grows, anything nearly new can also go to them; we make up My Stuff Bags for children arriving at the abuse shelter.