CONCRETE jungle

Think Twice Before You Toss That!

We should also think twice before we buy that. There is a beauty in the reduce, reuse, recycle motto. Reduce your consumption of materials. Reuse it if you do buy it. Recycle it if you don't have any other use for it. I like to turn my glass jars into planters for my variety of plants life I have at home.

Check out the lifespan of the basic materials we use and buy everyday;

Glass: 1 million year!
Plastic beverage bottles: 450-1000 years
Plastic bag: 500 years to forever!
Disposable diapers: 250-500 years
Aluminum can: 200-500 years
Styrofoam cup: 500 years to forever! (Meaning, it essentially does not biodegrade.)
Tin can: 50-100 years
Leather: 50 years
Nylon fabric: 30-40 years

This should give you a sense of how long your "trash" will live in that landfill it will go to. Our landfills are already over capacity so, let be more conscious of what we buy. Try reusing them when the initial use is done.

Ditch the Bottle

PRIVITIZES WATER
Purchasing water contributes to the privatization of water, meaning, it gives corporations permission to bottle up a natural resource (which is provided by the earth free of charge) and sell it back to us for 500x's the price of tap water. Water is a commons, meaning it is for everyone and does not belong to one entity entirely.

ENVIRONMENT
Plastic is made from petroleum and we all know how horrible oil extraction is on the environment.

Air pollution - contributes to climate change with the release of carbon dioxide.

Water pollution - oil spills happen all the time which destroys sea life and pollutes our drinking water.

Deforestation - the removal of trees which we need to filter the air.

Also, only 20% of bottled water is recycled meaning that the remaining 80% end up in our overfilled landfills or in the ocean

Americans used about 50 billion plastic water bottles last year. However, the U.S.'s recycling rate for plastic is only 23 percent, which means 38 billion water bottles – more than $1 billion worth of plastic – are wasted each year.

HEALTH
People like to believe that bottled water is more healthy than your local tap water. This is far from he truth. In actuality, tap water is literally 500 x's more regulated than bottled water. Tap water goes through strenuous regulations set by the government while bottled water is usually only tested once by the company and not the government. Also, most of the bottled water on the market today is just purified tap water anyway so it is coming from the same source your tap water is coming from.

“There is no reason to believe that bottled water is safer than tap water.”

-Dr. Gina Solomon, a senior scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council

Then there is the fact that it is stored in a plastic bottle which is made from petroleum. The chemicals from the plastic bottle can seep into your bottled water when left in hot temperatures such as a hot car in the summer.

MONEY You save money when you ditch the bottle. Bottled water is sold at 500x's the amount of tap water. A case of bottled water every week can get pretty pricey when you add it all up in the course of a year. The recommended eight glasses of water a day, at U.S. tap rates equals about $.49 per year; that same amount of bottled water is about $1,400.

To put it into perspective;
the avg 24 pack of Poland Spring water (which did not come from a Poland spring) = $6

Multiply that by 2 cases a month = $12
Multiply that by 12 months in a year = $144/year
On water that you can get through your filtered tap water.

VS

A water filter pitcher(lasts for years = $22
Plus a $5 water bottle = $27
This will last you for YEARS.

Instead, purchase a reusable water bottle and a water filter (a jug or a filter that attaches to your sink is cool).

Within the Next 24 hours ..

EVERY DAY

Nearly 230,000 people will be added to the world population.
Which puts a strain on the worlds limited natural resources.

Approximately 312 miles of tropical rain forest will be bulldozed.
Forests are the lungs of the earth. They provide us with the oxygen we need to SURVIVE! They also purify the toxins in the atmosphere. Cutting trees down is like chipping away at our lungs. We need those.

About 127 square miles of land will turn to desert due to poor farming practices (coughMONSANTOcough), overgrazing, and a warming trend caused by pollutants.
We need to keep the land healthy in order to remain fed with fruits and vegetables. The livestock industry is a huge culprit here.

Copyright | Jones & Bartlett Learning | Environmental Science | Edition 10

This is happening DAILY! Lets do something about it. BE the change you wish to see in the world. One person cannot do everything. But everyone can do SOMETHING.

It all comes down to supply and demand. If we do not demand as much, companies will not need to manufacture and supply as much. This means limiting our consumption. Practice minimalism. Shop at thrift stores. Think twice about buying that new iPhone when yours works fine. Do you really need more clothes? Are those new shoes really necessary?

The 300lb VEGAN Linebacker Crushing All Stereotypes .. and Opponents

“People ask me if I want to get a steak and I tell them I actually don’t eat that, or any meat or dairy. They’re usually thinking, ‘Wait, you’re supposed to be small and weak.’ But of course they can’t say that when they’re looking at me.”

I've had people tell me that it is impossible for them (as an athlete) to lead a completely vegan lifestyle because they could not get enough protein. Even though, my rebuttle is always, vegetables have protein too! However, I am no dietitian so I am not one to construct daily meal plans for them to prove my point. But, alas! David Carter, linebacker for the Chicago Bears, has crushed all nay sayers. If he can do it, so can you!

According to GQ, David has a daily intake of 10,000 calories to maintain and gain weight while eating "1.2 grams of protein per pound per day". This man does not miss a meal.
Originally, he became vegan to combat his tendonitis from which the harshness of football bestowed upon him. And wouldn't you know it, after a few months, it disappeared. Actually, David "is leaner and faster now than when he ate animals and their byproducts".

Apparently, he'd soon learn, a life in pain didn't have to be a given. Carter’s life changed when he learned, from a documentary on veganism, that dairy contributes to some forms of tendonitis. His own tendonitis had gotten so bad that he struggled to lift himself out of the bathtub. “I realized I was making everything worse,” he says. “I was feeding the tendonitis, the muscle fatigue, everything. So the next day I went vegan. The first thing I ate was a bean burger and haven’t eaten meat since.”

Here is an example of his what his daily intake looks like;

Breakfast

Snack

Lunch

Snack

Another lunch

Snack

Dinner

Snack

All vegan! So, don't tell me you can't go vegan because you wouldn't be able to maintain your weight. Don't say that you cannot get enough protein in your diet. The proof is in the pudding! Vegan pudding that is. :)

Never Throw Clothes and Shoes into the Dumpster Again

You can imagine how much of a pet peeve it is of mine to find clothes and shoes in the garbage. These can ALWAYS be recycled into something new. I have even watched people throw away perfectly good items because they do not know what to do with them. Besides the common gifting them to a sibling/cousin/friend, here are a few options for you to consider;

DONATE THEM!

Good Ol' Goodwill
Donate them to charity! Just round up all of the clothing and shoes you do not wear anymore and drop them off at your local Goodwill.

Planet Aid
Ever seen those bins stationed randomly around the city? Use them! Just simply gather all of your old shoes and clothes, put them in a bag and throw them in. Find your nearest donation bins for Planet Aid here.

Sell Them!

ONLINE
Download the following apps and get to selling!

PoshMark (app) (use my code BBYYP for $5 off your first purchase!)

Mercai (app)

Vint (app)

IN-STORE
Take your gently used clothes into any of these stores and they will offer you cash or a store credit to go towards purchases. You can sell your clothes or trade them for new ones!

Platos Closet
Find the nearest location here

Buffalo Exchange
Find the nearest location here

FLEA MARKET
Get out there, set up a table and SELL, SELL, SELL! This is fast and easy cash. Treat yourself to dinner and a movie ;)

H&M!
I made a previous post about H&Ms recycling program. If they are not in a good enough condition to sell, take all of your unusable garments to H&M and they will reconstruct it into something new! You will also receive a 15% off coupon.How's that for incentive?

If I am missing any, please let me know in the comments!

BRINGOLD CLOTHES TO RECYLE AT H&M!

I am so excited to find that H&M will take your old fabrics (worn clothes, drapes, curtains, cloths, towels, bedsheets, etc) and receive a coupon for 15%-20% off your entire purchase.!! This is so awesome because I have always struggled with where to take my old dingy white tee and busted clothing. Alas! H&M is the garment savior. I am TOO excited about this.

Check out there mission statement below;

We were the first fashion company to launch a global garment collection initiative. Today, you can hand in any clothes you no longer want. That way, we can reduce waste and give old products a new life. Eventually, we’ll close the loop on textiles so nothing ever goes to waste.

Of the thousands of tonnes of textiles that people throw away every year, as much as 95% could be re-worn or recycled.

Rewear – clothing that can be worn again will be sold as second hand clothes

Reuse – old clothes and textiles will be turned into other products, such as cleaning cloths

Recycle – everything else is turned into textile fibres, or other use such as insulation.

So take all your old garments from any brand and in any condition to your local retail store for that coupon and save. Save your pockets while saving the environment all at the same time.

Free two birds with one key

Kudos to you H&M!

Keurigs: A Breathing Ground for Bacteria and Mold

When I first discovered the "almighty Keurig" my first thought was, "uhm .. are these things recyclable?" Even if they were, those single use coffee cups did not look too eco friendly to me being that they were

Made out of plastic.
Single use.
NON RECYCLABLE

HUGE no nos in the environmental preservation movement. So I decided to do some digging on this praised invention. I found that over 8.3 billion K Cups a year are discarded which is enough to circle the earth 10.5 times! Count me OUT! Critics warn that the packaging needed for these systems comes with environmental and health-related costs. These millions of "k-cups" are ending up in the every expanding landfills. Only 5 percent of these k-cups are made out of recyclable plastic.

photo credit://motherjones.com
Fortunately, Green Mountain, who makes the most popular pods, called "K-Cups", has a sustainability plan where;

100% of their k-cups will be recyclable by 2020.
Zero waste to landfill at their manufacturing and distribution facilities.
Reduce greenhouse gases by 25%

Did I mention the bacteria?
I found that this contraption is bacteria and mold ridden and nearly impossible to clean as explained by a microbiologist;

The microbiologist in me is disgusted at the thought. Back in the day when I worked in a hospital lab, we emptied all water reservoirs daily or they would grow bacteria and a biofilm could develop. You are familiar with biofilms if you ever cleaned the goo out of a flower vase after the flowers have died. Biofilms are found wherever there is water and a surface to stick to (like your shower curtain).

Even Keurig.com itself says,

“Once your Keurig home brewer has been primed, you cannot empty the water from the inside. The internal tank of the brewer cannot be drained.”

Bacteria and mold are flourishing inside that hidden water tank and rubber ring. Check now! There is probably green or black slime around it. That my friend is biofilm. They are nearly impossible to keep clean and as Keurig.com itself said, they cannot be drained so that water sitting there is doing just that. Sitting there. Harvesting mold and bacteria. Lets debunk the myths about cleaning right now;

Coffee bean’s antibacterial action is not enough to kill these microbes. According to Duberg, an assistant professor of clinical laboratory science at Saint Louis University, it is only 50 percent effective in killing bacteria, such as Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus mutans, and molds.

Yes, boiling water can kill microbes but NO, your Keurig water is not getting hot enough. It would have to reach boiling temperatures for at least a minute. Your Keurig is not about that life.

If you insist on using your beloved Keurig and are willing to risk all the hidden mold and bacteria, there are reusable coffee cups on the market.

Vegan Food Review

It's grocery day!

So, I just tried vegan mayonnaise and vegan cheese for the first time. Let me tell you, I could not taste the difference! It's great! Being on the road to complete veganism, cheese has always been my downfall but I finally found just what I needed. I haven't tried the mozzerella yet though. I will let you know how it goes!

I just made a quick sandwich for lunch. My ingredients used were;

2 Sweet Hawaiian rolls Avocado
Vegenaise
Vegan cheese
Cucumber
Baby kale

Death to Paper Towels

photo credit; www.peopletowels.com

The paper industry is the third largest contributor to global warming.

Paper towels are one of the most inefficient throw aways we have. You literally use them one time and throw them away. That does the environment NO favors. They only end up in our over compacity landfills.
They also contribute to deforestation which is destrimental to our environment. Four billion trees are cut down each year to make paper. We need the trees to breathe being that they provide us with oxygen. The more trees we cut down, the less clean air will be provide as the trees filter out this essential air.

facts

To make one ton of paper towels, 17 trees are cut down and 20,000 gallons of water are consumed.
Every day, over 3,000 tons of paper towel waste is produced in the US alone.
Decomposing paper towels produce methane gas, a leading cause of global warming.
Paper was the largest contributor to municipal landfill waste in 2006.
The average person uses 2,400 – 3,000 paper towels at work.

The United States consumes 30 percent of the world’s paper each year. Of the 741 pounds of paper used by the average American each year, close to 55 pounds is tissue paper (which includes paper towels, napkins, facial tissue, and toilet tissue). Even with recycling programs, a little more than one-third of the trash going into landfills is paper products. Paper towels are not recycled.

So what should one use, you ask? Ah ha! A solution. REUSABLE NAPKINS! These are a staple in any fine dining restaurant and conscious household. They are not only appealing for a nice ambience but also eco friendly and great on the environment. You can purchase cloth napkins at your local dollar store.

I will be honest. When I first implemented this into my household, the drying after washing process was a bit straining but then alas! I found the solution to my problem. A towel rack! Duh. You can purchase one of these from any of these stores or online.

If environmental convervation is not convincing enough, how about saving money? Lets break it down (logically speaking);

If the average family spent $10 a month on paper towels, that would add up to $120 a year spent on paper towels that will only be thrown away after one use. You're literally throwing away money.
OR
You can run to the Dollar Store and grab about 5 3pcks of cloth napkins and spend only $3 which will last FOREVER.

I know it is convienent but convience can be the root of environmental destruction. If you truly want to lessen your carbon footprint on the earth and conserve our resources, please try this. It may take some getting use to but it helps. Every bit helps.

If you are not part of the solution, YOU ARE PART OF THE PROBLEM

Healthy Diet, Healthy Environment

The most environmentally friendly foods are often the healthiest ones for human consumption, and many foods that are damaging to our bodies are also damaging to the environment.

This should make tons of sense since our bodies have a strong likeness to the environment as we share the same organic compounds and chemical makeup. It is starting to become common knowledge that the livestock industry contributes most of the environmental pollution we see today. The livestock industry generates more greenhouse gas emissions than transportation! And you thought the car was the only enemy. Well, they have nothing on the meat you are probably chowing down on right now.

© Barilla Center for Food and Nutrition

The inverted environmental pyramid shows ecologically-damaging foods at the very top, such as meat and cheese. As you look down the pyramid, you’ll find fish, olive oil, other dairy products, and legumes. At the bottom are the least ecologically-damaging foods such as fruits and vegetables.

The food pyramid, which sits like a regular pyramid, features fruits and vegetables across the bottom, as the healthiest things for us to be eating, followed by grains, dairy, fish, eggs, and meat.

And before you argue that "meat is needed because it is the main source of protein", let me tell you that you are WRONG. More protein can be found in a piece of broccoli than you can ever find in a fork full of meat. You are only consuming the protein the animal ate. So don't be lazy, go straight to the source and eat your own vitamins!

If you have a minute and you just LOVE me, check out this video in its entirety and I will love you forever!

Before You Flush That Toilet ..

"If its yellow, let it mellow. If its brown, flush it down."

Now of course don't do this if you are at a friends home or using a public restroom. But at home, why not? Personally, I do it in the comfort of my own home. Why? Water conservation. Brazil is experiencing their worst drought in 80 years while California is experiencing their worst drought in 1,200 years!

The toilet consumes the greatest amount of water (30%) of any device in the average home. The average person in the United States uses anywhere from 80-100 gallons of water per day. Flushing the toilet actually takes up the largest amount of this water.

And this is why we have amazing green companies such as Why Flush? With Why Flush, you save 1,200 gallons of clean water with every 16 oz bottle. If you just cannot stand the sight of urine in your toilet bowl, just spray a bottle of Why Flush into your toilet and it is supposed to "capture and neutralize the odor of urine, replacing it with a pleasant smell of citrus. Why Flush counteracts the staining chemicals in urine to help keep your toilet bowl clean. Finally, it leaves the water in the bowl an appealing blue-green color."

"If 1% (1M) of US Households used Why Flush, we so would save roughly 7.2 billion gallons of water annually."

I just purchased my first bottle and will be using it soon! Stand by for product review

While you are waiting, enjoy a few water facts ! :)

Water covers 70.9% of the Earth’s surface.
Only 3% of Earth’s water is fresh water. 97% of the water on Earth is salt water(undrinkable)!! So we only have a fraction to work with!!
1.7% of the world’s water is frozen and therefore unusable.
68.7% of the fresh water on Earth is trapped in glaciers.
The water found at the Earth’s surface in lakes, rivers, streams, ponds, and swamps makes up only 0.3% of the world’s fresh water
30% of fresh water is in the ground.

How to Cut Heat Costs this Winter!

TURN THE HEAT DOWN Turn your heat off or lower your thermostat while you're asleep, at work or just simply leaving the house for awhile. Wear extra warm pajamas and grab and extra blanket!

LET THE SUN SHINE IN ! Open curtains on south-facing windows to let sunlight in during the day. Then close them at night to help retain heat.

BODY HEAT Groups of people generate a significant amount of heat so, if you are having guests over, turn down your thermostat a notch or two. They wont even notice!

CHANGE THOSE FILTERS Do not be lazy and ignore those "change filter" messages on your thermostat. Dirty filters make your heating inefficient which makes them work harder and uses more energy. Also, they can make you sick with allergens!

RUN FANS IN REVERSE Did you know that by changing the direction of the fan to counterclockwise will push warm arm into circulation as opposed to cold air?

TURN DOWN THE WATER HEATER You can lower energy costs 6 to 10 percent by lowering the temperature to 120 degrees, instead of the standard of 140 which is too high anyway.

Hope this helps!

Top Air Filter Plants

According to this study by NASA, these air filtering plants remove 90% of formaldehyde, benzene and trichloroethylene within 24 hours. Studies show that just one 6ft houseplant per 100 square feet of living area will be enough to filter out pollutants. The plants filter the air by breaking down indoor pollutants and absorbing the chemicals through their leaves. The bacteria in the roots of the plants help break down contaminants which are then turned into nutrients. Magic! See? Plants are our friends. See how much we need them to survive?

Check out an extended list of air filtering plants and what they filter out.

Be sure to bookmark this post for reference and take it to your local plant store to grab some seeds or a whole plant!

photo cred; www.goinghometoroost.com

Benefits of having plants in your home

Fight colds: indoor plants have been shown to reduce cold-related illnesses by more than 30% due to them increasing the humidity levels and decreasing dust. Eucalyptus (found in plants) can help clear phlegm and congestion from your system.
Decreased blood pressure: people with plants in their homes have less stress, which directly contributes to a lower blood pressure. Studies have shown that patients who face a garden view in their hospital rooms often recover more quickly than those facing a wall.
Healing properties: some indoor plants, like aloe, can be applied to skin and offer pain relief.
Allergy prevention: exposing children to plants early in life can help them build a tolerance and immunity to that allergen.

What's In Your Seafood?

photo credit: scienceblogs.com

While on my journey to becoming a complete vegetarian, I am sort of wading at pescetarian (seafood only diet when it comes to eating meat). I have no problems with that due to the fact that I absolutely love seafood. However, I did become aware of the unfortunate mercury levels in the sea animals due to pollution of in the oceans. Therefore, I took to NRDC to help figure out which animals have the most mercury and which I should probably stay away from. Also, I was also concerned about the endangered species in the ocean from overfishing. Luckily, this list indicates which spieces are endangered as well which is good to know as well. I was completely heartbroken to find that my treasured salmon is endangered!

Seafood Mercury Levels
* Fish in Trouble! These fish are perilously low in numbers or are caught using environmentally destructive methods.
** Farmed Salmon may contain PCB's, chemicals with serious long-term health effects.

LEAST MERCURY

Enjoy these fish:

Anchovies
Butterfish
Catfish
Clam
Crab (Domestic)
Crawfish/Crayfish
Croaker (Atlantic)
~~Flounder~~*
~~Haddock~~ (Atlantic)*
Hake
Herring
Mackerel (N. Atlantic, Chub)
Mullet
Oyster
Perch (Ocean)
Plaice
Pollock
~~Salmon~~ (Canned)**
~~Salmon~~ (Fresh)**
Sardine
~~Scallop~~*
Shad (American)
~~Shrimp~~*
Sole (Pacific)
Squid (Calamari)
Tilapia
Trout (Freshwater)
Whitefish
Whiting

MODERATE MERCURY

Eat six servings or less per month:

Bass (Striped, Black)
Carp
~~Cod~~ (Alaskan)*
Croaker (White Pacific)
~~Halibut~~ (Atlantic)*
Halibut (Pacific)
Jacksmelt
(Silverside)
Lobster
Mahi Mahi
~~Monkfish~~*
Perch (Freshwater)
Sablefish
~~Skate~~*
~~Snapper~~*
Tuna (Canned
chunk light)
~~Tuna~~ (Skipjack)*
Weakfish (Sea Trout)

HIGH MERCURY

Eat three servings or less per month:

Bluefish
~~Grouper~~*
Mackerel (Spanish, Gulf)
~~Sea Bass~~ (Chilean)*
Tuna (Canned Albacore)
~~Tuna~~ (Yellowfin)*

HIGHEST MERCURY

Avoid eating:

Mackerel (King)
Marlin*
Orange Roughy*
~~Shark~~*
~~Swordfish~~*
~~Tilefish~~*
~~Tuna~~ (Bigeye, Ahi)*

I hope this helps! Please be conscious of what you're ingesting. When in doubt, you could always bookmark this page and use it as a reference when food shopping or when you are out to eat at your favorite restaurant!

photo credit: www.ariaprene.com

Say No to Plastics

Plastic seems to consume our lives. Especially in the kitchen from storage to dishes to containers. However, plastics are not only bad for the environment but also bad for us. The toxins inside of plastic materials can seep into our food and liquids when heat is applied. Some toxins are even cancer causing agents such as BPA. Plastic waste account for a considerable number of pollution in our environment and are also the culprits in the Dead Zones in our oceans. It is time to phase out plastics once and for all.

Glass can be recycled into more glass and never use its value meaning, glass can be recycled into more glass forever and ever until the end of time. However, plastic containers cannot be recycled into more plastic bottles/containers. The plastic can only be downcycled into something different such as plastic lumber or carpet padding. Every time plastic is recycled, it loses its value. So, whenever you see plastic bottles, jars, or other containers, it’s new plastic. All new resources went into making it.

Here's the Facts

One million sea birds and 100,000 marine mammals are killed annually from plastic in our oceans.
Marine Life is consuming small pieces of plastic and all the toxics on it, which then is consumed by us.
Two patches of plastic are being accumulated year after year in the ocean. They’re not going anywhere, at least in the next 1,000 years.
Over the last ten years we have produced more plastic than during the whole of the last century.
50 percent of the plastic we use, we use just once and throw away.
Enough plastic is thrown away each year to circle the earth four times.
We currently recycle only five percent of the plastics we produce.
The average American throws away approximately 185 pounds of plastic per year.
Americans throw away 35 billion plastic water bottles every year (source: Brita)
Annually approximately 500 billion plastic bags are used worldwide. More than one million bags are used every minute.
It takes 500-1,000 years for plastic to degrade.
Some of these compounds found in plastic have been found to alter hormones or have other potential human health effects.
Plastic chemicals can be absorbed by the body—93 percent of Americans age six or older test positive for BPA (a plastic chemical).
Virtually every piece of plastic that was ever made still exists in some shape or form (with the exception of the small amount that has been incinerated).
44 percent of all seabird species, 22 percent of cetaceans, all sea turtle species and a growing list of fish species have been documented with plastic in or around their bodies.

Here's how to help;

First and foremost, NO MORE PLASTICWATER BOTTLES!! Not only are they extremely wasteful AND expensive AND contribute to the privatization of water AND are mostly tap water anyway, they are one of the main culprits of litter pollution. Chemicals from the water bottle seep into your water and into your system. Just grab a water filter and a portable water bottle.
Replace plastics with glass or metal; Instead of using your everyday plastic tupperware, opt for the glass tupperware and/or mason jars. Glass is better than plastic because;
- BPA is not present in glass.
- There is a better taste in glass bottles opposed to plastic.
- Glass is completely reusable therefore there is less waste.
- Glass does not leak any chemicals into our food/liquids.
Paper or plastic? NEITHER. Opt for the reusable grocery bags. They don't even have to be the store bought reusable bags. Any cloth bagging will work. Some states are even charging 10 cents per bag while others are banning plastic bags in grocery stores completely. So save money AND the environment. Also, the cloth bags hold more food and you don't have to worry about the bag bursting open.
NEVER EVER EVER BUY NON REUSABLE DISHES. And I mean EVER. Not even for a pic-nic or your house parties. Not those red plastic cups people love so much and especially not those Styrofoam cups that do not biodegrade at all! Meaning, they will be present in the earth for hundred of years! The thing is, they are a waste of money and a waste of waste. They all end up in the trash within one use which ends up in our ever expanding landfill. Instead, opt for reusable dishes. Chances are, if you needed them once, you'll probably need them again. Grab the cheap dishes for pic-nics and parties if you're afraid of getting them messed up.
Opt for the glass packaging. Glass packaging yields a better taste for food, is not only recyclable but also reusable. I always reuse my food packages for food storage like left overs. I love the glass mason jars :) Glass packaging for organic foods got high marks for: maintaining true flavor/taste, purity, healthiest, maintaining quality, preserving shelf life.

photo credits; www.doitwiser.com , http://plastic-pollution.org

No Shave November

Listen up fellas.. this one's for you

Its about that time! Summer is just about over. So, what are you going to do to keep that beautiful face warm? A scarf? Maybe. Turtle neck? Eh! Well, if you are a man, you know, a REAL man, the obvious choice is for you to BEARD UP!

Not only will women find you extremely attractive and besides the fact that beards are totally "in" right now, but you will also be doing your part in preserving the environment! That's right! Who would have thought?!

The average home uses nearly 11 gallons of water a day from running faucets alone and the average shave can use more than 3 gallons of water. Cutting out a morning shave significantly reduces this amount. By choosing to ditch the razor, you are of course saving water. Every little bit counts. And with the water crisis going on, we could sure use it.

Even Budweiser asked men to help save one million gallons of water by not shaving with their Grow One, Save a Million campaign. That was actually about 3 years ago but none the less, I respect the effort to bring about awareness to preserving water.

Each shave saves about 5 gallons of water, according to the beer company.

If beards really aren't your thing and you MUST shave, fill the sink instead of letting the water run, guys!

BEARD UP

WORLD FEST 2013

Flashback Friday!
(For those of us who missed "Throwback Thursday") But flash back to WORLD FEST, "LA's Largest Earth Day Festival!". I had such an amazing time learning more about environmental preservation, veganism, animal protection and more. I will for sure be at the next one!

REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLING - The How To and How NOT To

I have received a lot of questions about what can and cannot be recycled. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, approximately 80 percent of what Americans throw away is recyclable. Recycling reduces the amount of waste sent to landfills and incinerators thus providing us more land. Also, landfills are disgusting places that are horrible on the environment being that toxic waste from the landfills seep into the land and water supply poisoning our food and drinking water. It happens everyday. Recycling limits the amount of trash being sent to the landfill. •Prevents pollution by reducing the need to collect new raw materials; •Saves energy; •Reduces greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global climate change; •Helps sustain the environment for future generations; •Helps create new well-paying jobs in the recycling and manufacturing industries in the United States. Listed below is a general list of recyclables. Check with your local recycling company to see what they do and do not accept. Every city/state is different in what they are willing to take in for recycling.

PAPER

Here is the good news; paper accounts for more than a half of all recyclables collected in the US. Bad news is paper and paperboard products represent the largest portion of our municipal solid waste stream

Shredded paper(place shredded paper ONLY in bag before putting in cart)
White and Colored Writing Paper, Computer Paper, Magazines, Newspapers with Inserts
Junk Mail
Corrugated Cardboard
Cereal / Cracker Boxes
Phone Books
Books (Hard / Soft Covers)
Paper Egg Cartons
Soda Boxes
Milk Cartons / Juice Boxes
Brown Paper Bags

Tin or Aluminum Cans

Food / Pet Food Cans
Soda / Beer Cans
Pots and Pans
Small Metal Appliances

Plastic

Plastic Bottles
Two Liter Bottles
Milk Jugs
Bleach Bottles
Rigid Plastics (Crates, Hampers, Toys, Furniture)

Small Electronic Waste

Cell Phones
Cameras
Peripherals
Rechargeable batteries

Do NOT put the following items in your blue cart

Hazardous Waste
Medical Waste/Needles
Light Bulbs
Batteries
Garbage
Food
Pizza Boxes
Snack Food Bags (Chips / Popcorn Bags)
Fast Food Containers, Cups, Wrappers
Scrap Metal (Metal Pipe / Hangers / Wires / Auto Parts)
Motor Oil Bottles
Concrete / Rocks / Gravel / Wood
Yard Waste (Grass / Leaves / Plant Trimmings / Tree Branches / Prunings)
Styrofoam / Styrofoam Peanuts
Plastic Film
Plastic Wrap / Dry Cleaning Bags
Computer Monitors
TVs

Recycling 1 aluminum can = 3 hrs of energy to power a TV. -Can Manufacturers Institute
On average, recycling creates five times as many jobs as sending trash to the landfill. -EPA
For every 3' high stack of newspapers recycled, 1 tree is saved. -American Forestry & Paper Products

If you are not sure about what your city/state accepts as recycling or where to take your recyclables if your home does not have curbside pick up, check out these following sites for assistance; Earth911 1-800-RECYCLING.com

"I'm gonna pop some tags!! "

"Thrift Shop" is not just a popular song topping the charts but also a really sustainable practice as well. By shopping at thrift stores, you are lessening your carbon footprint by choosing to reuse gently worn clothing/shoes, read gently used books etc. This helps to keep "supply and demand down". Buying used items lessens the impact of the demands for new products. And no worries. There are name brand clothing in the thrift store but for DIRT CHEAP! Basically, not only are you saving the environment but also saving money! Free two birds with one key.

Check out the finds I came across at my local thrift store. I grabbed clothes, books and that painting behind me. This thrift store I stumbled upon specifically gives its profits to animals in need.

DOUBLE WHAMMY!