Category — Becoming Greener

I used to fill up a recycling bin every week with bottled drink containers.  Most of those containers were water bottles.

In Israel, we drank bottled water because even when filtered, the water had a distinctly rotten egg flavor.  We originally had a bottled water service, which though more expensive, was appealing since the company reuses their jumbo-sized plastic containers.  I figured that had to be better for the environment than all those little bottles.

But then I noticed that the big bottles were plastic #7, which is known to contain BPA (Bisphenol-A, a nasty organic compound that is both a carcinogen and an estrogen disrputor, among other things.)  The litre-and-a-half bottles were plastic #5, which is considered a “safe” plastic (although I’m starting to wonder if there is such a thing), so I switched back to the smaller bottles. And recycled a couple of dozen every week. [Read more →]

Sacrifice at the Pump

Does anyone remember that famous President Carter speech about sacrifice?  The one where he bundled up in a Mr. Roger’s sweater and urged Americans to accept the notion of personal sacrifice? Where he called for mandated gas rationing and lowered thermostats to help buck America’s dependence on foreign oil? You can go to PBS.org to read the full text of his speech.

As you might imagine, President Carter’s call for personal sacrifice went over like a lead balloon.  And interestingly enough, every subsequent American president has avoided the word sacrifice like the plague. [Read more →]

We celebrated my youngest son’s third birthday last night. I served a home-baked banana cake, hung decorations made from recycled construction paper, and asked my parents (our only guests) to wrap their gifts in the comics section.  But despite my green party-planning efforts, I fell short in one pretty important area: I used paper plates.

There, I said it. Ms-Trying-to-Be-a-Greener-Parent served her son’s birthday dinner on paper plates.  If you’re at all interested in my rationale, here it is: I have been incredibly busy and stressed out, between nursing strep throat (my five year old’s), cooking and hosting Rosh Hashanah meals, and tackling a never-ending list of work commitments, my house has taken a backseat on the priority list.  To wit: My sink is practically sinking under the weight of dirty dishes.  [Read more →]

Sometimes I think we might all be better off living in a yurt somewhere.  Actually, if money were no object, I’d probably go out and hire a sustainable architecture, buy organic furniture, lay reclaimed hardwood floors and plant my own pesticide-free garden. But money (and lack of a backyard) is an object, which means I’ve got to start somewhere a little more modest.

In the spirit of doing the best that I can with the resources I have, I present you with this list of ten cheap and easy ways to reduce your family’s exposure to toxic flame retardant chemicals (if you’re not sure what I’m referring to, click over to my post from last week about PBDEs).

#1. Damp-dust all surfaces at least once a week. Chemically treated furniture and consumer goods off-gas — and those particles are found in alarming rates in your household dust. Help rid your home of this dusty danger by using a slightly damp cloth on all surfaces.  While you’re at it, mop any tiled or wood floors, too.  Especially if you’ve got little kids at home who spend a lot of time hanging out down there.

#2. Use a HEPA-filter vacuum to sweep your carpeted floors at least twice a week. I can just hear the groans now (or maybe that’s just my own voice ringing in my ears), but remember this: PBDE-laden dust isn’t just hanging out on your curio and your coffee table, it’s also getting trapped in your carpets. As an added bonus, HEPA-filter vacuums go a long way toward reducing allergens, too. [Read more →]

Everybody is going green these days, it seems.  From restaurants touting their “green” paper products to little old ladies toting their cloth bags to the grocery store.  Green is most definitely the new black.

On the one hand, I think “Great! This planet can use all the help it can get!”  On the other hand, I’m starting to think that going green has become window dressing. Two parts marketing ploy, one part environmental movement.

Case in point: I just got home from my sons’ preschool Back-to-School night. The director gleefully announced that, “the preschool is going green!” And just how is the school doing this? By installing a paper recycling bin at the front door.  Parents who don’t have curbside pick up (we don’t) are invited to bring their paper to the school.

It’s a nice idea, right? An opportunity to increase recycling rates while teaching our kids about recycling. And yet something about her ebullient announcement seemed empty.  Empty, perhaps, because on any given day, I receive at least three handouts from the kids’ teacher and four more from the school administration. [Read more →]

I was drumming my fingers nervously on the keyboard, willing myself to come up with something genius to say, when it hit me: Just get the first post over with.  It doesn’t matter what you say, largely because no one is reading yet anyway. So, here it is: The Obligatory First Post.

I’ve been mulling over the idea of starting a for-public-consumption blog for a long time.  As a freelance writer, I blog for hire (currently about finding the perfect job and financing your college education). As a mom, I blog in relative seclusion (and with increasing infrequency) about raising my kids.

About six months ago, a friend (and blogging smartypants) told me I should write a blog.  I took his advice to heart, especially the part where he told me I needed a niche.  That niche part really stumped me. [Read more →]