With all the focus on global warming one has to wonder why it is so hard and expensive to "go green." Whether or not you believe global warming is occurring is a moot point. The point is we need to take better care of our planet, period! I feel the Earth is affected by what we do in our daily lives and I believe we need to take care of the one and only planet we have. This planet is the true legacy we are leaving our children. My mom always told me "leave it better than you found it" when I used or borrowed something; that idea should apply to this planet as well. We have the power to effect change individually as well as globally if we just remember to leave it better than we found it, it's simple but sound advice.
In a random search I came across a bit torrent on Azureus regarding green fuel/biofuels, the film is called Freedom Fuels. The film got me thinking about being more green as well as saving some green. It also reminded me that the price of gas is outrageous and the oil companies are making record breaking profits yet again; which really chaps my hide! Information in the film showed that the original diesel engine, developed by Rudolf Diesel in the 1890's, ran on peanut oil... a product that would burn clean, help farmers and could be produced less expensively than standard oil, it also doesn't have to be refined into gasoline. We have had cleaner burning fuels for over a hundred years so it pains me to know that politics and keeping oil moguls in business is more important to the US government than clean air. Simply stated, the oil companies have the American people by the cojones. We obviously don't mind their grasp since we refuse to educate ourselves or take the initiative to make the necessary changes because it takes too much effort on our part to make those changes. We would rather get oil from a country that wants nothing to do with us, and what happens if there is another oil embargo? We depend too greatly on other countries for our needs, we would be a stronger power if we were a more self sufficient country.
One thing you can do to help lower gas prices and help clean our earth is VOTE -vote for a candidate that wants a greener future, a future that could actually help American farmers and the people as a whole. On a side note, I really wish Schwartzenegger could be president! Okay back to my original train of thought... we need to buy more fuel efficient, E85 capable, electric or other hybrid type vehicles. Just like everything else the more there are the less expensive they are to make. I will take this opportunity to warn you to research your product thoroughly and really think about the effects past your wallet, make the financial and green choice that is right for you. It's not like you don't have time, you are probably at work surfing right now. If you can't by a green vehicle today, save and buy one tomorrow. Buy a diesel vehicle and put peanut oil in it! There is no conversion kit to buy, it was created to burn this type of fuel.
We do what we can right now for our financial situation. Personally, we can't afford a new vehicle right now so I drive with a plan, what I mean is this- if I am going to the south end of town I run all the errands I need or will need on that end of town. We use the cloth reusable grocery bags, because although paper is better for recycling purposes it does take away trees from our environment-which people forget to mention. We also have compact fluorescent bulbs in ALL of our fixtures including the kids lamps because they make much smaller bulbs now. We buy many eco-friendly products from companies such as Method Home, Shaklee and Seventh Generation to name a few. You can even make your own products! Most are simple. There is a book by Linda Mason Hunter and Mikki Halpin, titled Green Clean, the book has recipes that allow one to make their own cleaning products, non toxic products I might add that allow you to clean without the worry of your children being poisoned by some manufactured toxic concoction under the sink. Not to mention the space you save by not having five million different products under a sink! I love saving space as well :) The ingredients are mostly common household foods.
We also recycle... our neighborhood is part of a city that is in two different counties, we are on the side that does not have recycling yet because of some snafu with the county trash services. We have contacted our Mayor's office; the Mayor has been kind enough to actually call back, in person no less, and explain the situation letting us know they are trying to work through the problem. He even encouraged my husband and myself to keep calling if things were not completed in a timely manner. In the interim my in-laws area recycles and we take our stuff to their house, a bit of a pain in the butt you say? So what, I am leaving a cleaner environment for my kids which is more important to me than complaining about the little effort it takes to recycle in a not so conventional manner.
We use eco friendly water bottles too, there are some cool ones from Sigg, instead of using case after case of plastic bottles. The recycling process for some items can do more harm to the environment than good so although recycling is better than dumping non biodegradable trash, some things come at a cost. We also unplug anything not being used and are looking at getting a Smart Power Strip or two, a product I saw on Oprah. There are a few sites you can check out to give you even more green ideas and keep you informed, such as TreeHugger, Earth911, Global Green, and Grist "magazine" (these guys are very amusing and very real!).
Most of todays larger electronics are on "standby mode" and don't actually ever turn off. That little red, green or what ever color light that is on when your TV is "off," that is standby mode. The United Kingdom is trying to eliminate products that have a stand by mode by banning the import or manufacturing of those products in their country. I hope Americans will follow suit.
Still another thing I do is plant trees. I love trees, they keep my house cooler (by planting them on the south side) and they improve the look and value of my home. If you can't plant a tree on your property donate to someone who can, like American Forests, the Arbor Day Foundation or some other green group. We also have a sprinkler system, a little pricey up front but more efficient with water, money and time in the long run. We hope to afford solar panels some day too, they make a new type that look just like standard roofing. I also try not over stuff the washer and dryer. Some things get line dried which means they smell better too! Oh let us not forget dinner... we grill A LOT, especially in the summer; grilling out doors keeps the house cooler saving electricity by not over working the AC unit. I also set food out to thaw in the fridge overnight instead of using the microwave, or if I am home I set it aside during the day to thaw; no nasty quasi cooked meat from thawing it in the microwave.
I'm not perfect and I do forget things here and there but any effort I make is better than no effort at all. By becoming more eco friendly our children will grow up knowing how to better treat the planet and hopefully surpass us in being green.
Friday, July 20, 2007
Friday, July 13, 2007
Made in China
My husband made a comment last night that though meant to be humorous made quite a valid point, he said "it won't be too long before American's fly to China to have their children so they can have a sticker on their baby's butt that says 'Made in China'."
We have so many homeless people because we cannot afford to manufacture products in this country that might provide a job for someone and thus may actually provide a sustainable income that would allow people of this nation to live in a home (not necessarily a house) instead of the streets!
Why are we forced to go to a nation that doesn't respect its own people in order to get our products? I'll tell you why; because we Americans want it cheap and we want it yesterday. Just like there is little respect in this country there is also little regard for craftsmanship and quality. Today's definition of quality is a product that if it didn't break, fall apart or kill someone within the first 2 weeks of ownership of said product then that's a good quality product. The fact that our government mandates and regulates that items be produced safely, especially for our children, means products could be manufactured here more safely IF the American people would get off their butts and demand more products made in America. The excuse, and that is all it is an excuse, is that it is too expensive to manufacture most products here. We did that to ourselves people! We demanded cheaper and quicker lower quality products that would take away precious American job opportunities. We, the people of this nation, would rather go to Wally World and buy the same piece of crap made in China that our 1 million other neighbors have because it is cheap, may have toxins in it, is poorly produced, and will be adding to our credit card debt, just to throw it away in a week, a month, a year, whenever. Or we could have something well crafted, with longevity that was regulated so we know it is more safe than what is produced elsewhere... true, but then we would have to wait, and it would be original, oh my! Why have fine wood products when you can have particle board!? Why have toys that are made safely when you can have a toy painted with lead paint!? And why oh why brush your teeth with toothpaste that has nothing but toothpaste in it when you could instead brush your teeth with carcinogenic and toxic toothpaste!? Decisions, decisions, decisions.
Go to your favorite search engine type in "recall Made in China," "recalls from China," or something along those lines and see what you come up with. It won't be just toothpaste and Thomas the Train. It will be dog food, little girls jewelry, stickers with toxins in the glue, little boys cars with lead paint, crayons with toxins... toxins, toxins, toxins... notice a pattern here? The American government has no authority to regulate the production of items manufactured over seas. Which allows us to just freely give our kids, our pets, and ourselves items that may potentially be lethal.
Do you want to see change? I know I do! Stop buying items "Made in China." Buy items "Hencho in Mexico" then maybe their condition of living would improve and we could perhaps help that nation and its people aiding in a solution for illegal immigration--but that my friends is a totally different post. Buy items made in Germany, buy items from places that have some regard for its people and some regulation for manufacturing products... oh wait, now here is a novel idea BUY AMERICAN!
We have so many homeless people because we cannot afford to manufacture products in this country that might provide a job for someone and thus may actually provide a sustainable income that would allow people of this nation to live in a home (not necessarily a house) instead of the streets!
Why are we forced to go to a nation that doesn't respect its own people in order to get our products? I'll tell you why; because we Americans want it cheap and we want it yesterday. Just like there is little respect in this country there is also little regard for craftsmanship and quality. Today's definition of quality is a product that if it didn't break, fall apart or kill someone within the first 2 weeks of ownership of said product then that's a good quality product. The fact that our government mandates and regulates that items be produced safely, especially for our children, means products could be manufactured here more safely IF the American people would get off their butts and demand more products made in America. The excuse, and that is all it is an excuse, is that it is too expensive to manufacture most products here. We did that to ourselves people! We demanded cheaper and quicker lower quality products that would take away precious American job opportunities. We, the people of this nation, would rather go to Wally World and buy the same piece of crap made in China that our 1 million other neighbors have because it is cheap, may have toxins in it, is poorly produced, and will be adding to our credit card debt, just to throw it away in a week, a month, a year, whenever. Or we could have something well crafted, with longevity that was regulated so we know it is more safe than what is produced elsewhere... true, but then we would have to wait, and it would be original, oh my! Why have fine wood products when you can have particle board!? Why have toys that are made safely when you can have a toy painted with lead paint!? And why oh why brush your teeth with toothpaste that has nothing but toothpaste in it when you could instead brush your teeth with carcinogenic and toxic toothpaste!? Decisions, decisions, decisions.
Go to your favorite search engine type in "recall Made in China," "recalls from China," or something along those lines and see what you come up with. It won't be just toothpaste and Thomas the Train. It will be dog food, little girls jewelry, stickers with toxins in the glue, little boys cars with lead paint, crayons with toxins... toxins, toxins, toxins... notice a pattern here? The American government has no authority to regulate the production of items manufactured over seas. Which allows us to just freely give our kids, our pets, and ourselves items that may potentially be lethal.
Do you want to see change? I know I do! Stop buying items "Made in China." Buy items "Hencho in Mexico" then maybe their condition of living would improve and we could perhaps help that nation and its people aiding in a solution for illegal immigration--but that my friends is a totally different post. Buy items made in Germany, buy items from places that have some regard for its people and some regulation for manufacturing products... oh wait, now here is a novel idea BUY AMERICAN!
Friday, July 6, 2007
America is Missing!
How pathetic my first blog is a rant. But here goes...
This 4th of July should have been glorious but it only served as a reminder that the country my father and his father before him fought so hard to serve and protect SUCKS! It's not the country per say, but the American people in general. We are a rude, selfish, self righteous, holier than thou, singularly minded bunch of people (enough adjectives for you? There are more I could use!). Here is an example of what I mean... my parents own a small spread in Texas, across from their land and home is a fireworks stand on a neighbors land, the request (my parents and their other neighbors are polite so it was first a request) was to please not have people park on their land because as we know Texas is having some flooding issues and people parking on their property would tear it up. My parents have worked hard to make that land nice and trust me it looks like a park! They had to put up barriers to keep people from parking on the land, my dad is retired and in poor health, he doesn't need to put up barriers to keep disrespectful people off his property! The Sheriff was called multiple times by other near by land owners because their property was being torn up as well. Doesn't a Sheriff have better things to do than chase inconsiderate jerks off people's property? What a waste of tax dollars because no one has common courtesy and manners anymore. What happened to asking for permission to park here or there? Why not park in the parking lot of the VFW and walk the freaken ten feet to the fireworks stand? Are we really that lazy? What we get instead is one of the drivers telling a neighbor they didn't care if they tore up the land or got a ticket they would just pay it because it was no big deal. What? Are you serious? Disrespecting someones home is "no big deal?" I'm sorry but I busted my butt clearing that land too! I hauled away rocks and trees, I raked debris and you are going to tell me all that work doesn't matter to you because it is not yours? You pompous... (several expletives come to mind but I prefer to let my morals rule over my mouth, so feel free to insert your own expletives if you so choose) jerk! Meanwhile, the lady (and I use that term very loosely) at the fireworks stand gave my mom the finger when she came home from work, we assume because of all the visits from the Sheriff. What happened to this country? I mean really... what happened to common courtesy, manners and respect??? Where did they go? Why are they missing? What happened to the great and wonderful American people? Wake up folks! America is missing and we need to find her and bring her back!
We have perverts coming out of the woodwork, road rage, idiots on cell phones who obviously can't have a private conversation, drivers who cut you off in traffic because they can't get behind you because they have to be first! Why does everyone have to be first? It is physically impossible people! Not everyone can be first all the time at the same time! No one says "excuse me" or "pardon me" and what happened to "please," thank you" and "may I" no one uses those terms any more either. Do not just stand there and look at me like I am stupid if you need to pass by because I am so very sorry but my ESP is off line today! I can't read your mind! I don't know if I would even want to! For all I know you are staring at the same can of soup I am. Open up your mouth and say "excuse me, I need by please"or "pardon me, may I cut through" and for the love of God use your manners and say "please!"
That whole pay it forward thing works; try it! I let a lady who had two or three items to my ten go ahead of me. She asked if it was really ok!? Why wouldn't it be? Of course it is. Are we really so insensitive to those around us? Are we truly that callous? Or is it that we think we are so much more important and so is our time that we cannot and will not do something nice for someone? Or wait a minute, maybe it's that need to be FIRST! Me first, me first!!!! I want to be first!!! What are we, a bunch of three year olds?
I do it all the time, let someone ahead of me, I love to see people's reaction to someone being nice! Don't tell anyone but I have even had it returned, where someone let me go ahead of them. I do it in traffic too! I must be insane. I did it driving through Chicago! I was flipped off by the guy behind me (was that his IQ?) and the guy I let in front of me looked like he had just witnessed Jesus turn water into wine! I also like to say "please" and "thank you" to EVERYONE, I guess that makes me certifiable!
The janitorial staff where I attended college... I knew a bunch of them by name and most by face, said "Hi" to everyone I saw every time I saw them, why you ask? Because they are people too and they deserve my respect. Plus I am an extrovert. Same with the cafeteria staff. I also use my manners when I order fast food, does that shock you? "May I please have a..." etc not "Yeah, gimme..." They treat me the way I treat them. Crazy thing is I used to be embarrassed when my mom did this, she was polite and respectful, talked to people, I could have died! I hope my kids get embarrassed too. If more people would stop putting themselves first and try and put others before them we might have America back and she won't be missing any more! Trust me I'd love to have my kids go somewhere and not hear another child their age cussing like a sailor (it's just a figure of speech I don't need sailors posting back!). for example we go out on Fridays with a big group of people, one couple in the group have a 4 year old who calls everyone a "pecker head." Why? Because that is what his dad calls him! Hello? Anyone home? Do you really call your child that? What are you teaching him? It is children like him that are going to grow up and become jerks that tear up peoples property because they have no respect for themselves, others or others belongings!
I'd also love to have my kids go any where and not worry some freak with a fetish for children might snatch them away. I hate having to scare my daughter with the reality that the streets of America are not safe and anything could happen. Right now she can't play in the front yard because of the construction work going on in our neighborhood. The workers fly through our streets as if they are NASCAR or Indy drivers. Their mouths are flying too, f-this and f-that... to me that shows a limited vocabulary or pure laziness in trying to find a proper word, not to mention just plain ignorance. Although I must note I was outside today maybe one minute when I hear the roofers at the house next to us cussing up a storm and the supervisor on the ground as soon as he saw me must have said something because all of a sudden I hear from the guys on the roof "Sorry Ma'am! Didn't realize you were there." Of course I thanked them for the apology; they showed me respect and I could do the same. The majority of the construction workers do not respect our neighborhood and probably do not respect their own.
I have been to most of the fifty states and been to several countries because my father was military. My husband is from Europe and became a citizen at an early age, he is the son of an American military man as well. I know disrespect, selfishness, indifference, rudeness as well as utter disdain. I also know respect, politeness, tolerance, temperance and common courtesy. I also know it is my choice to act the way I want to, I choose to respect myself and others, I choose to be a good old fashioned proper American citizen. It should never be an embarrassment to say "I'm an American." I would hope it never will be. My wish for this country I love is that we Americans begin to take responsibility for our actions and become a mannerly and once again well respected country. Start small, try being polite to a neighbor, branch out and show respect to a service person, smile at a stranger, be courteous, let someone ahead of you in line at the grocery store or in traffic, then branch out some more! Your kids (that includes your nieces and nephews if you don't have kids) are watching you; what kind of America do you want to leave behind for them?
This 4th of July should have been glorious but it only served as a reminder that the country my father and his father before him fought so hard to serve and protect SUCKS! It's not the country per say, but the American people in general. We are a rude, selfish, self righteous, holier than thou, singularly minded bunch of people (enough adjectives for you? There are more I could use!). Here is an example of what I mean... my parents own a small spread in Texas, across from their land and home is a fireworks stand on a neighbors land, the request (my parents and their other neighbors are polite so it was first a request) was to please not have people park on their land because as we know Texas is having some flooding issues and people parking on their property would tear it up. My parents have worked hard to make that land nice and trust me it looks like a park! They had to put up barriers to keep people from parking on the land, my dad is retired and in poor health, he doesn't need to put up barriers to keep disrespectful people off his property! The Sheriff was called multiple times by other near by land owners because their property was being torn up as well. Doesn't a Sheriff have better things to do than chase inconsiderate jerks off people's property? What a waste of tax dollars because no one has common courtesy and manners anymore. What happened to asking for permission to park here or there? Why not park in the parking lot of the VFW and walk the freaken ten feet to the fireworks stand? Are we really that lazy? What we get instead is one of the drivers telling a neighbor they didn't care if they tore up the land or got a ticket they would just pay it because it was no big deal. What? Are you serious? Disrespecting someones home is "no big deal?" I'm sorry but I busted my butt clearing that land too! I hauled away rocks and trees, I raked debris and you are going to tell me all that work doesn't matter to you because it is not yours? You pompous... (several expletives come to mind but I prefer to let my morals rule over my mouth, so feel free to insert your own expletives if you so choose) jerk! Meanwhile, the lady (and I use that term very loosely) at the fireworks stand gave my mom the finger when she came home from work, we assume because of all the visits from the Sheriff. What happened to this country? I mean really... what happened to common courtesy, manners and respect??? Where did they go? Why are they missing? What happened to the great and wonderful American people? Wake up folks! America is missing and we need to find her and bring her back!
We have perverts coming out of the woodwork, road rage, idiots on cell phones who obviously can't have a private conversation, drivers who cut you off in traffic because they can't get behind you because they have to be first! Why does everyone have to be first? It is physically impossible people! Not everyone can be first all the time at the same time! No one says "excuse me" or "pardon me" and what happened to "please," thank you" and "may I" no one uses those terms any more either. Do not just stand there and look at me like I am stupid if you need to pass by because I am so very sorry but my ESP is off line today! I can't read your mind! I don't know if I would even want to! For all I know you are staring at the same can of soup I am. Open up your mouth and say "excuse me, I need by please"or "pardon me, may I cut through" and for the love of God use your manners and say "please!"
That whole pay it forward thing works; try it! I let a lady who had two or three items to my ten go ahead of me. She asked if it was really ok!? Why wouldn't it be? Of course it is. Are we really so insensitive to those around us? Are we truly that callous? Or is it that we think we are so much more important and so is our time that we cannot and will not do something nice for someone? Or wait a minute, maybe it's that need to be FIRST! Me first, me first!!!! I want to be first!!! What are we, a bunch of three year olds?
I do it all the time, let someone ahead of me, I love to see people's reaction to someone being nice! Don't tell anyone but I have even had it returned, where someone let me go ahead of them. I do it in traffic too! I must be insane. I did it driving through Chicago! I was flipped off by the guy behind me (was that his IQ?) and the guy I let in front of me looked like he had just witnessed Jesus turn water into wine! I also like to say "please" and "thank you" to EVERYONE, I guess that makes me certifiable!
The janitorial staff where I attended college... I knew a bunch of them by name and most by face, said "Hi" to everyone I saw every time I saw them, why you ask? Because they are people too and they deserve my respect. Plus I am an extrovert. Same with the cafeteria staff. I also use my manners when I order fast food, does that shock you? "May I please have a..." etc not "Yeah, gimme..." They treat me the way I treat them. Crazy thing is I used to be embarrassed when my mom did this, she was polite and respectful, talked to people, I could have died! I hope my kids get embarrassed too. If more people would stop putting themselves first and try and put others before them we might have America back and she won't be missing any more! Trust me I'd love to have my kids go somewhere and not hear another child their age cussing like a sailor (it's just a figure of speech I don't need sailors posting back!). for example we go out on Fridays with a big group of people, one couple in the group have a 4 year old who calls everyone a "pecker head." Why? Because that is what his dad calls him! Hello? Anyone home? Do you really call your child that? What are you teaching him? It is children like him that are going to grow up and become jerks that tear up peoples property because they have no respect for themselves, others or others belongings!
I'd also love to have my kids go any where and not worry some freak with a fetish for children might snatch them away. I hate having to scare my daughter with the reality that the streets of America are not safe and anything could happen. Right now she can't play in the front yard because of the construction work going on in our neighborhood. The workers fly through our streets as if they are NASCAR or Indy drivers. Their mouths are flying too, f-this and f-that... to me that shows a limited vocabulary or pure laziness in trying to find a proper word, not to mention just plain ignorance. Although I must note I was outside today maybe one minute when I hear the roofers at the house next to us cussing up a storm and the supervisor on the ground as soon as he saw me must have said something because all of a sudden I hear from the guys on the roof "Sorry Ma'am! Didn't realize you were there." Of course I thanked them for the apology; they showed me respect and I could do the same. The majority of the construction workers do not respect our neighborhood and probably do not respect their own.
I have been to most of the fifty states and been to several countries because my father was military. My husband is from Europe and became a citizen at an early age, he is the son of an American military man as well. I know disrespect, selfishness, indifference, rudeness as well as utter disdain. I also know respect, politeness, tolerance, temperance and common courtesy. I also know it is my choice to act the way I want to, I choose to respect myself and others, I choose to be a good old fashioned proper American citizen. It should never be an embarrassment to say "I'm an American." I would hope it never will be. My wish for this country I love is that we Americans begin to take responsibility for our actions and become a mannerly and once again well respected country. Start small, try being polite to a neighbor, branch out and show respect to a service person, smile at a stranger, be courteous, let someone ahead of you in line at the grocery store or in traffic, then branch out some more! Your kids (that includes your nieces and nephews if you don't have kids) are watching you; what kind of America do you want to leave behind for them?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
