Green Talk

Photo by Crysti.

Editor’s Note: This was the post that I was trying to publish for Mother’s Day but my web host was having server issues with my database. I am still posting it as a belated Happy Mother’s Day.

I am sure you have seen a voluminous amount of articles about what to get your mother for mother’s day ranging from organic flowers to the nifty recycled purse. In my mind, Mother’s day is not about buying stuff, but spending time with the person in your life who loves you unconditionally.

She is the one who:

1. Spent hours in labor having you (a story you probably heard endlessly) or went to great lengths to adopt you.
2. Wiped away your tears every time you had a fight with your friends, were disappointed about the outcome of an event, or fell down a million times trying to master that one feat you knew you could do.

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Last year, I used corn gluten to hopefully dent the of invasion of crabgrass in my lawn. I knew based on my conversations with Professor Christians, the inventor of corn gluten as an herbicide that it would take three years to rid my lawn of the ugly looking “wanna be” grass. After speaking to the Professor, I became a corn gluten believer and I was ready to take the corn gluten plunge. I was not a pesticide type of gal.

Professor Christian gave me detailed instructions how to properly use the corn gluten as delineated in my article, “Corn Gluten: Can Animal Feed K’O Crabgrass?.” Did I follow them? Well, not really. The first rule I broke was when to apply it, which is when the forsythia is blooming. Due to spring break, I ended applying the corn gluten after the forsythia was in full bloom. Corn gluten has a lot of nitrogen in it so my lawn at least benefited from it. The weeds were sending me thank you notes too since corn gluten does not kill perennial weeds.

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Photo by Jon Rawlinson by permission

Valentine’s Day is tomorrow. Perhaps buying flowers, candy, or presents for your cutie is not your thing. Maybe your sex life is hot enough that you don’t need the items listed in my article, “10 Tips for a Hot Green Valentine’s Day.” What else could you do? Jason Crawford, the author of Scream to Be Green, suggests for those who do not wish to buy anything to cook a nice dinner for your loved one. Very romantic and an excellent idea.

Here is another suggestion, how about curling up with your Valentine and watch a romantic movie? Go out and rent a movie from your local video store, which supports your local economy and you are reusing something that is already used. Pretty green. Perhaps you have a romantic video or can catch one on TV at your house. Even greener!

Add some Eden organic popcorn with the recipes listed here and maybe some organic free trade chocolate or cocoa for hot chocolate. Throw on a java log and you are good to go.

Perhaps to offset your carbon footprint for the evening, consider making your own heat with a few soy candles …Sorry once you write a post like I did about sex toys, bondage, and lubricant, it is hard to forget…

Back to the movie and out of the gutter. If I had to name three romantic movies that I like along with my favorite lines from them, they would be as follows:

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Photo by permission of Brooke Raymond

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner where we shower our love ones with chocolates, flowers and cards. Perhaps you would like to make this day a little different. A little greener, a little racier, just a little different. Here are 10 ideas that are sure to make your V-Day smolder so that even Mama Earth would approve.

1. Spice it up with Naughty Undies: Who says that you have to bare it all to be sexy. Sometimes the imagination is worth the fantasy. Spice things up with Sprig’s list of sexy eco- lingerie. Why settle for lingerie which is made of non-biodegradable materials such as nylon, polyester, and rayon when you can have the luxury of a natural material such organic cotton, hemp/silk blend, or bamboo rub your skin. Check out the sexy lingerie at the UK Enamore. Looking for lingerie sold internationally, check out the Stella McCarthy collection as seen on the Sassybella blog, but it may not be available in time for V-Day. (This is an IOU worth waiting for.) Don’t forget the beautiful lingerie at US based Blue Canoe.

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“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” Martin Luther King, Jr., Strength to Love ¹

As our world struggles with climate change, unrest in the Middle East, Darfur, poverty and sickness, we all can learn from the lessons taught by Martin Luther King, Jr. Each one of us has the power to create change to make a difference whether being conscious of our environmental choices, writing your representatives to demand change, or simply teaching our children what it means to take care of others.

Please watch this beautiful short video on Martin Luther King, Jr. He had a dream and the courage to seek change.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2ZtGj8s7H4[/youtube]

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Photo by permission of Waldo Jaquith

Tomorrow is New Year’s Day. Every year, people make their New Year’s resolutions with their best intentions. We also take this time to reflect on our past year. Did we accomplish what we wanted or was this year disappointing whether personally or financially.

This year I would like to give space for my readers to tell us what they hope for this year, whether it is personal or for their businesses. I know everyone wants to lose weight, be more successful in their business, or find their soul mate. Health and happiness are always popular resolutions, as they should be.

Give me something from the gut other than the ones listed above since we all want to accomplish them. If those are your resolutions, then tell us why. Bear in mind, it does not necessarily need to be a green resolution (but green is good…)

When you list your resolutions and/or this year’s accomplishments or disappointments, tell us something about yourself, your business, or your website. My goal is to create a community that people feel apart of. Don’t use this opportunity to just tell us what you sell and give me a lame resolution. Honor the space that I am giving all of you, since your very words could help empower someone else to give thought to their own resolutions.

Since we are baring our souls, I will go first.

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Photo by permission of Square One^®

Wondering what would be an amazing New Year’s hostess gift? Consider bringing along a bottle of Square One, organic vodka that not only delivers taste but considers its impact on the Earth.

When I first learned about Square One Vodka^®, I questioned whether or not this was just another company jumping on the “let’s be green” band wagon by having perhaps one or two green attributes. As I discovered, Square One is the real deal from its selection of the vodka’s ingredients, the manner how it is processed, to how it is packaged.  But, the story does not stop there.  Sustainability is also a core principal of the Company’s corporate practices.

Square One^® was started in April, 2006 by Allison Evanow, CEO of the company, along with her sister, Debbie, a leader in the banking industry, and Kimberly Charles, owner of Charles Communications Associates, a respected PR firm, with the determination to show the liquor industry that you can combine social responsibility with social fun. Allison’s background, although unusual, has given her a unique perspective on what it takes to make a quality, good tasting organic vodka in an overly saturated market.

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It is the day before Christmas and of course you have waited until the last day to wrap gifts. This was me last week when I had to deliver 80 plus gifts to all of my children’s teachers, aides, cafeteria workers, and so on. We get a little nuts with holiday gifts for everyone at the schools. It is our way of thanking everyone from their teachers to the janitors for making our children lives so much more special.

Then of course, there is the mailman, the doctors, the nurses, the crossing guards, the garbage men…. It can be an expensive holiday but just to see the look on everyone’s faces as you give them just a little something makes your heart melt.

This year like all other years I ordered gift boxes from Bauman Family in Pennsylvania who make the most amazing apple butter, pear butter and pumpkin butter in no sugar added or regular. Although they are not organic, they try to use as little pesticides as possible. Perhaps you may have an organic farm similar to Bauman where you can get these butters since they truly are a treat. I purchase an assortment of gifts for everyone from gift boxes with four butters to individual butters. This year the boxes did not come until Wednesday night and I only had two days to wrap everything and have it delivered to three different schools. I am not joking when I tell you that I had 86 gifts and bottles to wrap.In the past, I have gotten plastic bags, used a lot of ribbon, wrapping paper, and stick on name cards. I don’t want to tell you how much tape I used. I definitely should have been bounced out of the eco-club.  So, what was I going to do this year?

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Photo by permission of A Greater Gift of a Sunshine Shawl

Are you stumped what to give your Aunt or boss for the Holidays? Can’t figure out what to get your best friend for his or her birthday? You have run out of the usual ideas of note cards, candles, and plastic gift cards. Wishing to be kinder to the Earth this season with your holiday joy?

Even with the purchase of green gifts, which are better for the Planet, here is a thought about giving a gift of self-sufficiency for artisans and farmers around the world who are struggling to live a life without poverty and helplessness through A Greater Gift, a program by SERRV International.

What exactly is A Greater Gift? It is the marketing arm of SERRV International, a fifty-six year old company dedicated to helping those less fortunate. “Our mission is to promote the social and economic progress of people in developing regions of the world by marketing their products in a just and direct manner.” All products that the organization carries are fairly traded, which means that SERRV participates in a system where numerous artisans and farmers all over the world, including the United States, are paid fair wages for their products based upon a set of internationally accepted fair trade principals designed to improve the livelihood of low income people.

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Photo by Stephen Helms by permission.

The Holiday season seems to start right after you put that last plate away for Thanksgiving dinner. If you are going to spend your green this season, then consider giving environmentally friendly gifts that will lessen your impact on the Earth. Who knows? These gifts may turn out to be some of the most treasured gifts you have ever given. Here are some of the following suggestions with help from our green friends in the blogshere.

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