Good being green

OK, guys, tune out now ~ as this next resolution is for the ladies only (and or drag queens) ~ as I resolve to buy only earth and woman friendly products for my toiletries and makeup. Here, I talk deodorant, makeup and tampons (see).

First, I made the change to natural deodorant a couple years ago ~ I use Crystal Body deodorant spray (not the rock ~ I don’t like the crystal rock). Nope, not spray in the sense of aerosol, but as in a little bottle with a spray pump that finely mists you with a four-ingredient water solution.

I used to hate the fake-flowery smell of the tradition and popular deodorants anyhow, much less that atrocious stickgrip feeling it left under my arms for the next day ~ and I tried all of them (including other natural types). You see (TMI), I have what I call an overactive armpit, and no deodorant was able to stop the b.o.. Even within a couple hours, I’d smell like a mix of old wet dog and a cheap drugstore deodorizer… yuck. With Crystal, Marc no longer hears me say “Crap, I smell myself!” on a daily basis. I’m totally neutral smelling (uh… usually!)

Plus, all those commercial/popular Read the rest of this entry »

BTW, end of the year, beginning of another ~ check your smoke / fire detectors (and Carbon Monoxide too) to make sure the batteries are still good.

Nothing would be less fun than having to replace all your stuff that burnt away (at least what is replaceable) ~ not to mention how un”green” the consumerism of replacement is, doubled with the toxins that burnt into the atmosphere.

A smorgasbord of green rolled up into a messy little sushi just for you: 

A.  I know my title looks crazy right now ~ and yes, I changed the blog name… a whole post will soon follow, as well as some meat on it in the “who’s ashley sue” page, which will also be updated this weekend.  Hopefully by this time next week, my blog will look normal (whatever that is) and will be completely stable. 

B.  Check out this fantastic little ditty that Ginny from the Blog posted on recycling and new years resolutions and frustration, and see if you can help inspire Joey down in the comments section…

C.  Check out this great link sent to me via Lisa that shows the Raleigh Philosophical Society’s stance on the necessity of consumerism to the vitality of our downtown… sadly, I can’t disagree… perhaps we can have cool stores like Father & Sons instead of Targets though…

D.  Hands down the best 30 minutes you can spend watching the internet is this nifty whiteboard magic… seriously.  I was really skeptical of sitting through a 20 minute video, but it pulled me in and gave me food for thought for the last two days.  I’ll be posting more about it later. 

Thanks ~ had to get that off me ~ whew.

For the coming year(s) of my life, I resolve to make action happen in my personal life in order to feel less… well, less of so many of the bluh things I have felt lately.

Consequently, I resolve to de-tv myself. 

No, I will not throw my tv by the curb (I’d donate it to AnimalKind Retails anyhow).  I will not unplug the cable (besides, I pay for cable with my rent involuntarily… wouldn’t that be throwing out money?).

I resolve to turn off the tv unless I am actively watching a show ~ choosing to sit and indulge in Young and the Restless (sick, I know, I am sick), yell at the Steelers (and here) for yet another sadly predictable week (still love you, TP/BBR/WP/SH/HW) or relax in awe of Planet Earth / Blue Planet (the best series EVER ~ thank you BBC).  But NO more “hey, I’m bored, I’m home, let’s turn on the tube and let it putter another Friends rerun while I cook”, which is frankly where most of my tv viewing takes place. 

Boo.  I resolve to turn off the tv and hence experience my own thoughts.  Or turn on music.  And paint.  Or, OMG, get so bored I go for a walk at the park.  Or experience my community.  Make a friend with the elderly chap next door.  Or use my new cookware to try a scary new recipe.

By taking this resolution, I know I will damper the feelings of gloom, loneliness and guilt I take on as I watch yet another episode of Dharma & Greg.  I know that I will inspire myself in ways I did not know I could in that time.  I know that I will become more aware of humanity and the world around me by actively choosing what I do and where I am, as opposed to passively allowing my life to pass by as I watch other losers’ lives (sorry… exaggerated judgement for effect).  I know that I will find a new class to take or make that leap out of a plane with Doug (and drag Marc with us).  And by choosing to experience all these other things instead of the tv, I save the senseless energy consumption of constantly having it on.

Who knew that turning off the tv could do so much for 2008. 

I’m surprised I turned the tv off long enough to think it all through.

Cheers to viewing more through my own eyes and less through a flat screen in 2008~

Sustainably yours, Ashley Sue

Finishing off the holiday posts, I thought I would share this post from Treehugger about how the drought affected tree purchases in NC this year.  Apparently, NC is quite the conversation, even in Boston. 

It may be too late for this year, but hey, we may still be dried up next year too (but yay for today’s rain).  So get creative and build your own scrappy tree like our friends at Beloved Binge have the last two years.  Or, a certain friend of mine with another festive twist on holiday decor sent this pic:

For this year, though, you can certainly recycle a load full of your holiday waste (and recycle your tree, whatever kind of tree it may be).  Let’s start with the gifts:

Jasmin at PlanetGreen shows you nifty elegance with leftover wrapping paper.

Also, here are a list of items you can (and should) recycle now:

Chipboard – that’s all those gift boxes!

Corrugated cardboard – the boxes, but remember, they must be flattened and reduced to 3’ x 3’ pieces ~ or taken to specific corrugated cardboard bin!

Wrapping paper – Yes!  It can be any color (make a tear in it, if the jagged edge is white it’s acceptable) but CANNOT be foil or have glitter, etc. on it.  The scotch tape is fine, but no ribbons or bows.  As to the ribbons and bows (if you’re not saving them and reusing them yourself) – the last few years I’ve heard that arts and crafts stores love to have them for classes they teach.  Check with one nearby and see if they’re interested.

Greeting Cards – including the envelopes – again, NO FOIL or glitter.

Magazines & Catalogs – all the ones you placed orders from or got those wonderful decorating ideas from.

Residents can also recycle wrapping paper, trees, gift boxes and greeting cards at the five Convenience Centers listed below, Wednesday, December 26, 2007 through Sunday, January 13, 2008, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

* Convenience Center #1 ­ 1050 Old Stage Road in Garner
* Convenience Center #2 ­ 6000 Old Smithfield Road in Apex
* Convenience Center #4 ­ 3600 Yates Mill Pond Road in South Raleigh
* Convenience Center #7 ­ 9008 Deponie Drive in North Raleigh
* Convenience Center #11 ­ 5051 Wendell Boulevard between Wendell and Zebulon

And last, but not least, your Christmas tree!  It doesn’t go in your recycling  bin (well, not usually, unless as seen above), but put it out at the curbside on your regular collection day and Raleigh will recycle it… or drop it off at the following Wake County Parks between December 26 and January 13, from 8 a.m. ­ 5:30 p.m.

* Blue Jay Point County Park ­ 3200 Pleasant Union Church Road in Raleigh
* Harris Lake County Park ­ 2112 County Park Drive in New Hill
* Lake Crabtree County Park ­ 1400 Aviation Parkway in Morrisville

For more information, please call Wake County Solid Waste Management at 856-6186.

Another resolution I hereby swear to for 2008 is to take a softer stance when viewing the habits and beliefs of others. 

Living a more eco-friendly (green, veg-friendly, etc) lifestyle can already seem pretty daunting in a lot of ways, and unfortunately, I see a lot of people’s interest and passion dampered by overzealous, soapbox-standing perspectives on being sustainable enough or not.  If you’re real motive is to inspire people, lead by example and not by running your mouth incessantly (funny for a blogger to say that, right?).

TrueGreenConfessions is a great site to share your dark green secrets, and the current featured confession sums up this resolution nicely~

I HATE that green is trendy now. All it does is enable big corporations (who care nothing about the environment) to use it as a marketing gimmick. And the gullible public buys “organic” frosted flakes and thinks they are doing something good. Consumerism does not = environmentalism.

Boo on tooting how great you are or comparing others negatively.  How about I do what I can and what feels right for me, you do what you can and what feels right for you, and we make peace with the fact that we will overlap in some areas and perhaps disagree in other areas?  Sounds like a great resolution to (for) me.

Besides, while certain facts are indisputable, perspectives and values on life and time are very personal and individual ~ and arguing how wrong someone lives is surely no way to persuade them to live greener.

Plus, getting all worked up can only negatively affect stress levels, which will in turn negatively impact your health (mind, body and soul).

So in resolving to be less of a snap-judgement type, I also resolve to listen more carefully… by listening to others, I can learn something myself or even gain fuel for my own perspective.

Pic is of me cutting up a cooked chicken to make Marc’s part of the soup.  I’m 100% long-time veg, Marc’s not… and Maryann is amused.  This pic’s for you, Maryann.

Get your rain barrels now while the rain is coming down here in the Triangle of NC.  Wowsa!

Greener Habits for Raleigh has (or had… shoot them a comment and inquire) rain barrels, and I’ve seen them at Wholefoods in the area too.  You may think they’re pricey, but think investment.  We may not have three days of rain again until 2013.

Here’s a little clip to get you stoked to buy a barrel… They actually look bizarrely like fun!  eaheh

Who I am is a girl who loves to cook, and cooking more can be a great way to green up your New Year.

Thus, Resolution #1 (in no particular order):  Resolve to cook more often.

Yesterday, I made a big pot of brothy goodness ~ full of healthy inexpensive ingredients (red potatoes, sweet potatoes, celery, bell peppers, spices galore, Bragg’s, and chicken in Marc’s).  Unfortunately, only the sweet potatoes were locally grown/organic, but I can make that more of a priority next time.

This stockpot of soup is served with wonderful easy biscuits that I cheated (thanks to ready-bake style in the refrigerated section of the grocer ~ and NO I do not consider that actual baking), and it should last us this whole week.  This soup offers us simple nutrients and warmth.

This soups offers the chance to have real foods, not canned soups (full of preservatives and stablizers, then packed into aluminum) that only have to be recycled (good, but using fuels which we can just bypass by not having canned foods as often) or worse yet, chucked in the trash. 

And it saves me time for lunch at work today, when I would be driving home to make something (again with the fuel).

Plus, cooking, particularly preparation foods and baking, really puts me in touch with who I am.  And that reminds me to thank my “in laws”, Bernice and Dan and the “siblings-in-law” (as I call them) for rockstar cookware to help me have fun in the kitchen. 

Whether you’re celebrating Christmas today or you’ve celebrated another holiday instead, I’m guessing you likely are preparing for 2008 ~ and maybe even making resolutions for the new year.

New Year’s is a huge thing for me, and only seems to get more important with each year.  Maybe that’s because I’m a New Years Day baby ~ each New Year is truly a whole new, fresh-from-day-one year for me ~ 365 days more (or 366, depending) gone, another 365 (or so) ahead ~ with my birthday to punctuate the new opportunities that the New Year symbolizes.

I savor the opportunity to reflect on the past year of my life and figure out what’s worked for me, how far I’ve come, and how much further I have to go.

Sadly, the past year has been a challenging one for me.  I’ve accomplished a lot ~ my world has come alive with opportunities and milestones, for which I am both thankful and proud.

Personally, however, I have been living very out-of-harmony with the very spirit of who I am and what I believe.  I believe your actions must coincide with your mind, heart and soul.  As a result of living out of accordance with “me”, my back is a gigantic kink, my heart is heavy and my cheeks are wet far too often.

And here comes my Jerry McGuire-style mission statement/awakening.

I’m not trying to be a sadsac, and I realize every day that I am so unbelievably blessed… but this gloom weighs on me constantly now ~ to the point that I’ve missed out on my favorite time of year ~ the holidays (apologies to my lovely colleagues and to Marc ~ all of whom have been experiencing my bah-humbugginess).  The holidays are still sweet, but bittersweet this year, but consolation lies in knowing not all holidays will be this hard odd.

I feel a weight starting to slough off of me, however, and that ginormous sachel of concrete is called 2007.  Each chunk of cynderblock I’m crawling from under is a different aspect of the me that I know but have ignored.

I’m looking forward to making my resolutions ~ and living by them.  Some will be serious.  Some will be silly.  Many will be “green” in some fashion.  But they are all personal and important to me.

I’ll share my resolutions with you, one by one, over the next days, and I would love to hear yours as well.

So as sad as I am that the holidays have all washed away without feeling much whimsy and passion, I joyfully look ahead at the fact that I have a fresh chance to rebegin ~ who I am and what I do ~ together as the united power-couple they should be.

Thank you for letting me vent ~ and with nothing officially green to share ~ but just sharing a bit of who I am… and why.