I had every intention of participating this year. Instead I powered up in a big way and felt like crud while doing it. It all started with my son's birthday cake. I figured I could bake it before Earth Hour began and let it cool over night so I could ice it in the morning prior to having 22 people over for a party. Good plan.
That was until the cake decided to stick to the pan, fall out in bits and pieces before crumbling onto the serving tray. Looking at the mess, I wondered if any could be salvaged. We munched on it a bit and made the conclusion that I needed a "do over".
In an attempt to cover all my bases I made a 9 x 13 white cake AND 24 chocolate cupcakes. The cupcakes were my back up in case the cake Round 2 flopped too. So there I was when all other environmentally conscious and earth-minded people were playing cards and board games by candle light, I was power baking two rounds of sugary goodness... with the kitchen light on.
Cake Round 2 threatened to fall apart as well, and even split down the middle after I placed it on the tray. Nothing a bit of icing couldn't cover but I figure it was a way for the cake gods to remind me just who was in charge.
Showing posts with label environment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label environment. Show all posts
Monday, March 28, 2011
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Church of Eco-Sinners
Going green is the new buzz phase, almost as catchy as being "born again". For some, being environmentally friendly has taken on new heights. Many years ago, I took it as my personal mission to save the planet. I figured at least I could make some choices for my kids so I could absolve myself of any guilt I may encounter later in life. I didn't want to have to explain to my grandchild why I didn't at least try something.
Anyone who knows me, knows I do nothing halfway. Suffice to say, I became eco-obsessed. I devoured any literature I could find on the subject and began making little changes all the while preparing for my big, off the grid, hippie leap out of the consumer driven world. For the most part, it's still my goal.
But as I delved deeper into the green (under)world I noticed more and more inconsistencies. For example, many eco-aholics promote vegetarianism as a way to save the planet. It prevents gases from cattle manure, saves prime produce producing farmland and forests from being used for pasture. In general, vegetarianism improves our overall health. All mighty goals. Other Green Guru's swear by eating locally, and supporting neighbourhood producers. Also a noble goal.
Both have inherit flaws.
For one, vegetarians in the northern hemisphere require a varied diet that is not available locally in the cold winter months, thus relying on carbon emitting transport to bring in all those vegetables they are consuming. In essence, the strict vegetarian is causing huge gaping holes in the ozone and causing the greenhouse effect. Where as meat-atarians are doing the same buy consuming meat causing methane gas distribution and prime farmland loss. Who is the real eco-sinner? The vegetarians forced to eat foods grown thousands of miles away or the omnivore who consumes locally grown fayre which is far less efficient to produce?
I have come to the conclusion that we are ALL eco-sinners. Some more than others. Some are very much aware of their sins, while others remain blissfully ignorant.
Some city dwellers do not even own a car, preferring public transportation and pedal power to get them from point A to B, all the while cranking their heat in their gas furnace rather than putting on a sweater in the winter time. Some country dwellers drive huge gas guzzlers but grow so much of their own food they hardly ever need to go to the grocery store to buy food. These scenarios are real. Somewhere in all this we need to figure out what is best for us and the world we live in.
In the meantime, amateur environmentalists and closet eco-sinners (namely bloggers) post freely all their advice and wisdom, wagging their cyber fingers at unsuspecting readers. You are an eco-sinner because you don't use their brand of all natural shampoo. You are an ignorant eco-sinner for not knowing that chemical XYZ exist in that sneaker on your child's foot. You are not as good as them because they have it all figured out and quite frankly...you are severely lacking.
I follow at least 50 blogs. Many are like me, moms trying out new ways to raise a family without breaking the bank or the planet. Sometimes we succeed and sometimes we flop. We are human after all, and no one is perfect. However I have noticed a few who stand out more than the average. These are the self-righteous, sanctimonious super moms who have it all going on (all that and a bag of organic, all natural veggie chips). They make the rest of us crunchy moms look like Hummer driving, polyester wearing, bottle feeding, live-in nanny employers.
These people make it seem like they know exactly what you and you and you and I need to do to make our homes and families healthy and free of eco-guilt. The planet would be saved if we all just did it their way. In some ways, they are right but there's a few flaws. For one, I don't live in Australia. For another, I don't have a huge savings account and I really don't want to swear off shampoo, deodorant and my feminine razor, thank you very much! I just want to be me, not them. I want stuff that will work for me. What Suzy Q, or Jane Doe, or Johnny Come-Lately do may not be helpful to me and I should not be made to feel like an inadequate, wannabe environmentalist for not doing it their way. And I am sick and tired of reading posts about how everyone is Doing It Wrong!!
Deep breath.
Okay. So with that said, I want to apologize if I have ever made anyone feel guilty or inadequate for what I have posted here. At my heart, I am just trying to share what works for my family and I am very much aware that what I do may not be for everyone. I hope that I have showcased a middle path free of finger wagging and self-righteous indignation. If I have not being so Zen, then I apologize, repent my self-righteous sins and promise I will try harder from here on out. Amen.
Anyone who knows me, knows I do nothing halfway. Suffice to say, I became eco-obsessed. I devoured any literature I could find on the subject and began making little changes all the while preparing for my big, off the grid, hippie leap out of the consumer driven world. For the most part, it's still my goal.
But as I delved deeper into the green (under)world I noticed more and more inconsistencies. For example, many eco-aholics promote vegetarianism as a way to save the planet. It prevents gases from cattle manure, saves prime produce producing farmland and forests from being used for pasture. In general, vegetarianism improves our overall health. All mighty goals. Other Green Guru's swear by eating locally, and supporting neighbourhood producers. Also a noble goal.
Both have inherit flaws.
For one, vegetarians in the northern hemisphere require a varied diet that is not available locally in the cold winter months, thus relying on carbon emitting transport to bring in all those vegetables they are consuming. In essence, the strict vegetarian is causing huge gaping holes in the ozone and causing the greenhouse effect. Where as meat-atarians are doing the same buy consuming meat causing methane gas distribution and prime farmland loss. Who is the real eco-sinner? The vegetarians forced to eat foods grown thousands of miles away or the omnivore who consumes locally grown fayre which is far less efficient to produce?
I have come to the conclusion that we are ALL eco-sinners. Some more than others. Some are very much aware of their sins, while others remain blissfully ignorant.
Some city dwellers do not even own a car, preferring public transportation and pedal power to get them from point A to B, all the while cranking their heat in their gas furnace rather than putting on a sweater in the winter time. Some country dwellers drive huge gas guzzlers but grow so much of their own food they hardly ever need to go to the grocery store to buy food. These scenarios are real. Somewhere in all this we need to figure out what is best for us and the world we live in.
In the meantime, amateur environmentalists and closet eco-sinners (namely bloggers) post freely all their advice and wisdom, wagging their cyber fingers at unsuspecting readers. You are an eco-sinner because you don't use their brand of all natural shampoo. You are an ignorant eco-sinner for not knowing that chemical XYZ exist in that sneaker on your child's foot. You are not as good as them because they have it all figured out and quite frankly...you are severely lacking.
I follow at least 50 blogs. Many are like me, moms trying out new ways to raise a family without breaking the bank or the planet. Sometimes we succeed and sometimes we flop. We are human after all, and no one is perfect. However I have noticed a few who stand out more than the average. These are the self-righteous, sanctimonious super moms who have it all going on (all that and a bag of organic, all natural veggie chips). They make the rest of us crunchy moms look like Hummer driving, polyester wearing, bottle feeding, live-in nanny employers.
These people make it seem like they know exactly what you and you and you and I need to do to make our homes and families healthy and free of eco-guilt. The planet would be saved if we all just did it their way. In some ways, they are right but there's a few flaws. For one, I don't live in Australia. For another, I don't have a huge savings account and I really don't want to swear off shampoo, deodorant and my feminine razor, thank you very much! I just want to be me, not them. I want stuff that will work for me. What Suzy Q, or Jane Doe, or Johnny Come-Lately do may not be helpful to me and I should not be made to feel like an inadequate, wannabe environmentalist for not doing it their way. And I am sick and tired of reading posts about how everyone is Doing It Wrong!!
Deep breath.
Okay. So with that said, I want to apologize if I have ever made anyone feel guilty or inadequate for what I have posted here. At my heart, I am just trying to share what works for my family and I am very much aware that what I do may not be for everyone. I hope that I have showcased a middle path free of finger wagging and self-righteous indignation. If I have not being so Zen, then I apologize, repent my self-righteous sins and promise I will try harder from here on out. Amen.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
The Wind, The Wind...The Wind has Changed!*
We went on a road trip this past weekend to see a play in Stratford. It's about three hours from where we currently live and so we had to take the road trip in stride. About an hours drive in, we started passing these gigantic wind turbines. It was not so much a wind farm more like individual farms with four or five on their land. They seemed to pop up everywhere as we drove along the highway. The turbines were enormous yet elegant.
We stopped to take a look and listen. All we could hear was the wind. Other than that the turbines moved silently. Some anti-wind power activists say that since the installment of these wind power generators local residents have felt ill, get headaches, and all because of the supposed vibration these things cause.
Mind you, we were just passing through, but I felt no such difference in that area than in our own backyard. My husband likes to point out that no matter where you live, city or country, beneath wind turbines or elsewhere, there are frequencies passing through us all the time we just don't notice them.
Perhaps certain people are more sensitive to these vibrations, or perhaps they are just causing a squawk for no reason other than aesthetics. I can not determine someone else's comfort (or lack thereof) so I must give these claims some thought.
What I do know is this: our way of life and our ability to continue living like this is dependent upon our ability to find alternatives. We need a cleaner more permanent solution than coal or oil. Nuclear power is clean but not desired. Solar energy is expensive and has more impact on a individual basis than on a larger scale. Wind Turbines generate a lot of power and can be done on a larger scale for the general population but people don't like the look of them.
I don't like the look, or possible fall out of a nuclear plant. I don't like the look of oil spills. I certainly don't like knowing that somewhere in the world someone is blackening their lungs while mining coal for our energy. Taking everything into consideration I like the look of a turbine better than any of these other, more standard energy producers. And I certainly wouldn't mind having one in my own backyard.
*Inside joke from a production of Saint Joan in highschool.
We stopped to take a look and listen. All we could hear was the wind. Other than that the turbines moved silently. Some anti-wind power activists say that since the installment of these wind power generators local residents have felt ill, get headaches, and all because of the supposed vibration these things cause.
Mind you, we were just passing through, but I felt no such difference in that area than in our own backyard. My husband likes to point out that no matter where you live, city or country, beneath wind turbines or elsewhere, there are frequencies passing through us all the time we just don't notice them.
Perhaps certain people are more sensitive to these vibrations, or perhaps they are just causing a squawk for no reason other than aesthetics. I can not determine someone else's comfort (or lack thereof) so I must give these claims some thought.
What I do know is this: our way of life and our ability to continue living like this is dependent upon our ability to find alternatives. We need a cleaner more permanent solution than coal or oil. Nuclear power is clean but not desired. Solar energy is expensive and has more impact on a individual basis than on a larger scale. Wind Turbines generate a lot of power and can be done on a larger scale for the general population but people don't like the look of them.
I don't like the look, or possible fall out of a nuclear plant. I don't like the look of oil spills. I certainly don't like knowing that somewhere in the world someone is blackening their lungs while mining coal for our energy. Taking everything into consideration I like the look of a turbine better than any of these other, more standard energy producers. And I certainly wouldn't mind having one in my own backyard.
*Inside joke from a production of Saint Joan in highschool.
Friday, May 7, 2010
Plastic and Oil
The David Suzuki Foundation is promoting this interesting personal saga of one woman who had sworn off acquiring new plastic for one year.
You can also check out her blog at Plastic Manners
Plastic is derived from fossil fuels. A few years ago, when I discovered this I was enraged with myself for not being better informed. I had been striving to lessen my dependency on oil by focusing on fuel use and the distance my food traveled. The depletion of fossil fuels is more systemic than what's on the surface. It's not just what we drive and how far we travel. It's also about how warm we keep our thermostats, what we feed our children and what we choose to purchase at the store.
I recently read the book, Why Your World Is About To Get A Whole Lot Smaller by Jeff Rubin. It's an excellent read, one that highlights our dependency on oil and gives solid evidence to the future COMPLETE depletion of all oil on the planet, a natural resource that takes a million years to generate. We will run out eventually, that's a no-brainer.
So why are we using this precious commodity to wrap out kids' school lunches in, or to make toys with or to package water? We should be rationing this stuff for really important things like medical supplies and anything that can not be made with alternative sources (wood, metal).
Many people have debated the validity of this claim, stating that Peak Oil was a concept brought forth in the 1970s. Unfortunately, the scientists back then offered a much more generous time line. The rate of depletion has since doubled with international travel on the rise, more cars on the road and more consumption of meaningless and down right silly products. Our houses are bigger, which need more fuel to heat. Our commutes are longer. Our consumption keeps rising and yet not many stop to think where all this is coming from...or what will happen when it runs out.
You can also check out her blog at Plastic Manners
Plastic is derived from fossil fuels. A few years ago, when I discovered this I was enraged with myself for not being better informed. I had been striving to lessen my dependency on oil by focusing on fuel use and the distance my food traveled. The depletion of fossil fuels is more systemic than what's on the surface. It's not just what we drive and how far we travel. It's also about how warm we keep our thermostats, what we feed our children and what we choose to purchase at the store.
I recently read the book, Why Your World Is About To Get A Whole Lot Smaller by Jeff Rubin. It's an excellent read, one that highlights our dependency on oil and gives solid evidence to the future COMPLETE depletion of all oil on the planet, a natural resource that takes a million years to generate. We will run out eventually, that's a no-brainer.
So why are we using this precious commodity to wrap out kids' school lunches in, or to make toys with or to package water? We should be rationing this stuff for really important things like medical supplies and anything that can not be made with alternative sources (wood, metal).
Many people have debated the validity of this claim, stating that Peak Oil was a concept brought forth in the 1970s. Unfortunately, the scientists back then offered a much more generous time line. The rate of depletion has since doubled with international travel on the rise, more cars on the road and more consumption of meaningless and down right silly products. Our houses are bigger, which need more fuel to heat. Our commutes are longer. Our consumption keeps rising and yet not many stop to think where all this is coming from...or what will happen when it runs out.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Earth Day Clean Up
The other day the kids and I joined a group of homeschoolers who were cleaning up a very messy ditch in the city. The place the city asked us to clean was a back road dumping ground, and one that was in desperate need of resuscitation.
The kicker came when my son yelled out, "We found a toilet!". Oh what a day. We filled about 10 bags of garbage and piled numerous items along the road like dumb bells, cardboard boxes, paints cans and lots of items that could have been recycled. One can of paint had been spilled all over the ground. It was awful. Made my stomach turn at times. We couldn't get to it all. You'd need an army to make a dent on this area of refuse.
It was obvious this road, because it was off the beaten path and out of sight of businesses, was a common spot to roll down your window and chuck things about, or even pull up the truck and unload un-useables rather than pay dump fees . I had no idea people still did this kind of unthinkable damage and knowingly damage our planet. But like I explained to my daughter, people always think someone else will clean it up. Someone else will take care of it. In this case, the someone else was a group of homeschoolers and their tree-hugger parents. So sad that a group of kids have to clean up the mess we adults make.
Maybe my grandkids will not have to pick up trash along the side of the road, maybe by then we will have more sense than to leave things for others to clean up.
The kicker came when my son yelled out, "We found a toilet!". Oh what a day. We filled about 10 bags of garbage and piled numerous items along the road like dumb bells, cardboard boxes, paints cans and lots of items that could have been recycled. One can of paint had been spilled all over the ground. It was awful. Made my stomach turn at times. We couldn't get to it all. You'd need an army to make a dent on this area of refuse.
It was obvious this road, because it was off the beaten path and out of sight of businesses, was a common spot to roll down your window and chuck things about, or even pull up the truck and unload un-useables rather than pay dump fees . I had no idea people still did this kind of unthinkable damage and knowingly damage our planet. But like I explained to my daughter, people always think someone else will clean it up. Someone else will take care of it. In this case, the someone else was a group of homeschoolers and their tree-hugger parents. So sad that a group of kids have to clean up the mess we adults make.
Maybe my grandkids will not have to pick up trash along the side of the road, maybe by then we will have more sense than to leave things for others to clean up.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Entertainment without a Footprint
I am loving this digital age. There are so many ways to cut back on our garbage, refuse and clutter if we learn to embrace the technological age. The very fact that I am embrassing technology separates me from many homesteading and simple living advocates. Most would have us believe that new age technology keeps us chained to our desks, slaves to our jobs and always plugged in.
I agree in some ways. Being such a technologically advanced society has many draw backs. There is quite a large pile of electronic garbage piling up as things like VCRs, VHS tapes, cassette tapes, old cell phones, broken printers and any number of out dated computer related garbage. Sometimes new technology is manufactured so cheaply that when an item breaks down it becomes more cost effecient to buy a new one. One could also argue that being so plugged in makes employers expect more by way of productivity. It makes us slaves to the office and it causes many to interrupt family time to answer the blackberry or check innumerable emails.
On the other hand, if approached wisely technology can be a boon for those of us who are environmentally conscious. For one, most electronic items can be recycled with nearly all parts finding new uses leaving very little to be sent to the landfill. These recycling places are usually private businesses that accept your broken monitors and televisions for free. Their employees strip it down and then sell the material to industries needing the copper, glass, gold and plastic that is found within. To find one near you check your phone book. You might be pleasantly surprised.
Another trick is to think about the items that give you and your situation the most bang for your buck.
For me, I love my digital camera. I can take a plethora of photos, save 100s of pictures on a disc and put them away for safe keeping, never having to print any unless I have a specific use for them. I love that no chemicals are used so I can enjoy my pictures.
I have a digital picture frame that flips through hundreds of photos, always changing and showing me memories through out my day. I am often pleasantly surprised and thus my photoframe never blends in with my surroundings. When on vacation my most prized souvenirs are my photos so I never have to purchase snow globes, pins or other such items found in most gift shops (and then later at the second hand store). It would also be good to note that keeping your photo files on a disc which is stored in a fire safe box is a good way to guard your memories against fire or, even a more likely, a computer crash. You may loose a lot in a house fire, but the most common item missed is family photos.
My husband and I have also made a pact when it comes to electronic and entertainment items. We no longer buy new music in CD form. We either shop online for MP3 formatted music or purchase used. DVD's are approached in the same way, buying only used movies. This has drastically reduced our garbage from these items.
My husband is a big PC gamer. He loves getting a new game each month and I just couldn't imagine the waste we would generate if he bought those video games at the stores. Instead he belongs to an online account, in our case Steam, that allows him to purchase games which are then virtually added to his profile. He can play as often as he wants and if our computer crashes there is no chance of loosing his purchases because they are operated through this company that holds his account. In this way he can be entertained by this modern convention without contributing to the landfill issue. There are no emmissions from trucks transporting his games to him. And he didn't need to create emmissions going to the store.
I bet if everyone sat back and thought about digital ways to cutback on waste hundreds of pounds of plastic could be prevented from going to our landfills. There could be less trucks on the road carting these goods around. And less chemicals filling the air while manfacturing these products.
I agree in some ways. Being such a technologically advanced society has many draw backs. There is quite a large pile of electronic garbage piling up as things like VCRs, VHS tapes, cassette tapes, old cell phones, broken printers and any number of out dated computer related garbage. Sometimes new technology is manufactured so cheaply that when an item breaks down it becomes more cost effecient to buy a new one. One could also argue that being so plugged in makes employers expect more by way of productivity. It makes us slaves to the office and it causes many to interrupt family time to answer the blackberry or check innumerable emails.
On the other hand, if approached wisely technology can be a boon for those of us who are environmentally conscious. For one, most electronic items can be recycled with nearly all parts finding new uses leaving very little to be sent to the landfill. These recycling places are usually private businesses that accept your broken monitors and televisions for free. Their employees strip it down and then sell the material to industries needing the copper, glass, gold and plastic that is found within. To find one near you check your phone book. You might be pleasantly surprised.
Another trick is to think about the items that give you and your situation the most bang for your buck.
For me, I love my digital camera. I can take a plethora of photos, save 100s of pictures on a disc and put them away for safe keeping, never having to print any unless I have a specific use for them. I love that no chemicals are used so I can enjoy my pictures.
I have a digital picture frame that flips through hundreds of photos, always changing and showing me memories through out my day. I am often pleasantly surprised and thus my photoframe never blends in with my surroundings. When on vacation my most prized souvenirs are my photos so I never have to purchase snow globes, pins or other such items found in most gift shops (and then later at the second hand store). It would also be good to note that keeping your photo files on a disc which is stored in a fire safe box is a good way to guard your memories against fire or, even a more likely, a computer crash. You may loose a lot in a house fire, but the most common item missed is family photos.
My husband and I have also made a pact when it comes to electronic and entertainment items. We no longer buy new music in CD form. We either shop online for MP3 formatted music or purchase used. DVD's are approached in the same way, buying only used movies. This has drastically reduced our garbage from these items.
My husband is a big PC gamer. He loves getting a new game each month and I just couldn't imagine the waste we would generate if he bought those video games at the stores. Instead he belongs to an online account, in our case Steam, that allows him to purchase games which are then virtually added to his profile. He can play as often as he wants and if our computer crashes there is no chance of loosing his purchases because they are operated through this company that holds his account. In this way he can be entertained by this modern convention without contributing to the landfill issue. There are no emmissions from trucks transporting his games to him. And he didn't need to create emmissions going to the store.
I bet if everyone sat back and thought about digital ways to cutback on waste hundreds of pounds of plastic could be prevented from going to our landfills. There could be less trucks on the road carting these goods around. And less chemicals filling the air while manfacturing these products.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Blog Action Day "Climate Change"
Today is Blog Action Day, a day when bloggers all around the world are focusing their thoughts and their words on Climate Change.
Climate Change is real. It is happening and we are not as helpless as many would think. We can make changes to alleviate the strain we have put on the earth. With all the back and forth arguing about whether or not Climate Change is real or even mankind driven it is easy to get bogged down in the details. I liken the banter to arguing whether the house is on fire. "Is the house on fire? If so what is the proper course of action? How can we put the fire out without destroying the items inside (aka our way of life)? What about the structure (economy)? How can we be sure the entire building won't collaspe?
Truth is we don't know anything for sure but if we look at all the scenarios what is worse?
Option A: If Climate Change doesn't exist and we do nothing, then no loss, no gain
Option B: If Climate Change doesn't exist and we do something thinking it exists then we have strengthened our sustainability, our alternative energy source infrastructure and made the world a better place regardless if it was necessary.
Option C: If Climate Change does exist and we do something then we could possible overt disaster by minimizing damage and bettering the planet at the same time.
Option D: If Climate Change does exist and we do nothing... oh crap!
I once had a heated discussion with someone about developed nations and their ability
to derive enough energy from renewable resources (ie: Solar, wind etc). His argument was that it would be impossible to generate enough power from these alternatives to supply everyone with enough power. I strongly disagreed.
I have been dreaming of living off grid for years and have done enough research to know that utilizing power completely from solar and wind energy is very do-able. The only caveat? We may not be able to consume the amount of electricity at our current rate.
My argument to him was I do not plan to have a dish washer, I can wash by hand. I will most likely live without a clothes dryer I can hang anything on the line, even indoors during winter. I can use solar cookers and outdoor ovens. I can use a wood cook stove or choose more meals that require no energy to heat. By doing all these things I can live without any need for damaging energy sources. It can be done. The question is whether or not our current society is ready to give up these luxuries for the sake of the planet?
The thing is Climate Change is not something that can be tackled by one person, or a group of people. Climate change is something that must be tackled because of a genuine acceptance by the public at large of how our way of life is affecting the planet.
Here are a few things everyone could be doing to offset our affect on the planet and halt climate change.
- plant a garden, even a small one, to reduce the number of miles our food travels from field to plate.
- line dry whenever possible and avoid using the dryer. Buy a drying rack or a retractable clothes line for inside during winter or rainy days.
- buy second hand whenever possible and pass on anything you don't need to someone who will use it.
- Think long term when making purchases. Buy items that will last, even if it costs a bit more. In the end it will save cheaply produced items from finding their way to the landfill within a year or two.
- Walk, ride your bike or carpool to work and school. Make a conscience choice to drive less. Combine outtings and plan one day a week when the car stays at home.
- Teach children that taking care of toys and being gentle with them so they don't break is something they can do for the environment.
- Avoid plastic (since it is derived from fossil fuels), seek out items made of natural materials like wood, wool and cotton. Our even glass because it lasts longer than plastic.
- Find out what your municipality accepts for recycling. You might be surprised at how much can go in the blue bin.
- Refuse plastic shopping bags and carry your purchases or use reusable cloth bags every time you go to the store.
- Use cloth diapers, cloth napkins, rags to clean up spills instead of paper towel.
- look around your home for ways that you can effect change.
- speak up! Let others know you are thinking about the environment. Think of ways your hobby, activity, sport, or group can become more earth friendly. My spinning group began asking everyone to bring their own mug, plate and utensils so that we didn't have to use paper/Styrofoam plates for our meals.
To read other blog posts on Blog Action Day check out their website!
Friday, October 9, 2009
The 100 Mile Diet
Has everyone heard of the 100 Mile Diet? When I first heard of it a little more than a year ago I thought it was another crazy scheme to loose weight, you know something like the cabbage soup diet or grapefruit diet. Turns out the authors of the book, Alisa Smith and J.B. MacKinnon, meant DIET in the traditional sense, the make up of what we eat.
You'd be surprised at the amount of food that, although grown right down the road, is being brought in from other provinces or states, even other countries. My family and I, well actually I mostly, have been shopping the last year with this in mind. I noticed a massive display of strawberries in my regular market. It was the height of strawberry season here so naturally I thought I can enjoy a summer delicacy without much guilt yet when I looked at the package I noticed all plastic clam shell packages had been imported from California. There is a fairly large berry farm right down the road and I knew their fruit, picked fresh from the plant was sweeter, redder and would last longer.
It angered me to think that my local grocery could not support our local farmers, save the environment and our taste buds. Locally picked produce is so much better when picked in it's prime and eaten shortly after. Even my 9 year old daughter notices the difference between store bought strawberries and the ones we pick ourselves from the field.
I have known for a long time that I wanted to exert more control over where my food comes from. I am a locavore at heart but have fallen short of actually sourcing out all the local food until recently. My resistance to actually taking on the diet is purely financial. If money was no object it certainly would be nice to rely solely on the food produced locally but let's be honest, local food and local farmers can not compete with the large agribusinesses who's profit margins matter more than animal well being. Local food is expensive and my inner tightwad has been sabotaging my efforts to live completely from food produced here.
On some things I have had to swallow back my Ebenezer tendencies but in others I just can't. I can not see paying $5 for a dozen eggs even if they are organic (in my house local trumps organic considering how many hoops small farmers must jump through around here to get an official designation).
I came up with a plan, not an excuse but something my family and I can better live with while making the transition. We're calling it A Whole Lot of Local. It's a combination of Whole foods (foods closest to it's original source, without processing) with a lot of Local. And when I say a lot, I mean a lot... 75 per cent local is a number I have in my head but we will see how the winter goes.
We kissed Tim Horton's goodbye with one last shabang. We've been traveling around checking out farms and farmers markets sourcing out our food. Even my daughter has reminded my son that we can't go to McDonald's "because it's not a 100 Miles"... he thinks the diet means we have to walk a hundred miles before we can eat anything, got to love kid logic.
Certain things we will allow. Sugar, for the time being while I source out conversions to honey or maple syrup sweetened recipes. Black tea for my husband, who has also promised to give herbals another try. Yeast for my baking, and a small amount of lemon juice for canning. We plan to treat ourselves with a box of clementines at Christmas like the pioneers. There will be other exceptions I am sure but let's face it, so much of the world economy is driven by international trade that many places in Canada that would have produced flour or yeast have migrated down south. One of the points of this diet is to keep what we have alive and thriving here in Ontario and perhaps encourage more producers to give it a go here as well.
Thanksgiving is the perfect time to give local eating a try. An entire meal can be prepared using only locally sourced ingredients. Even if most people don't think an entirely local diet is not for them, making small local purchases can go along way to help the bigger picture.
Happy Thanksgiving Canadian readers!
You'd be surprised at the amount of food that, although grown right down the road, is being brought in from other provinces or states, even other countries. My family and I, well actually I mostly, have been shopping the last year with this in mind. I noticed a massive display of strawberries in my regular market. It was the height of strawberry season here so naturally I thought I can enjoy a summer delicacy without much guilt yet when I looked at the package I noticed all plastic clam shell packages had been imported from California. There is a fairly large berry farm right down the road and I knew their fruit, picked fresh from the plant was sweeter, redder and would last longer.
It angered me to think that my local grocery could not support our local farmers, save the environment and our taste buds. Locally picked produce is so much better when picked in it's prime and eaten shortly after. Even my 9 year old daughter notices the difference between store bought strawberries and the ones we pick ourselves from the field.
I have known for a long time that I wanted to exert more control over where my food comes from. I am a locavore at heart but have fallen short of actually sourcing out all the local food until recently. My resistance to actually taking on the diet is purely financial. If money was no object it certainly would be nice to rely solely on the food produced locally but let's be honest, local food and local farmers can not compete with the large agribusinesses who's profit margins matter more than animal well being. Local food is expensive and my inner tightwad has been sabotaging my efforts to live completely from food produced here.
On some things I have had to swallow back my Ebenezer tendencies but in others I just can't. I can not see paying $5 for a dozen eggs even if they are organic (in my house local trumps organic considering how many hoops small farmers must jump through around here to get an official designation).
I came up with a plan, not an excuse but something my family and I can better live with while making the transition. We're calling it A Whole Lot of Local. It's a combination of Whole foods (foods closest to it's original source, without processing) with a lot of Local. And when I say a lot, I mean a lot... 75 per cent local is a number I have in my head but we will see how the winter goes.
We kissed Tim Horton's goodbye with one last shabang. We've been traveling around checking out farms and farmers markets sourcing out our food. Even my daughter has reminded my son that we can't go to McDonald's "because it's not a 100 Miles"... he thinks the diet means we have to walk a hundred miles before we can eat anything, got to love kid logic.
Certain things we will allow. Sugar, for the time being while I source out conversions to honey or maple syrup sweetened recipes. Black tea for my husband, who has also promised to give herbals another try. Yeast for my baking, and a small amount of lemon juice for canning. We plan to treat ourselves with a box of clementines at Christmas like the pioneers. There will be other exceptions I am sure but let's face it, so much of the world economy is driven by international trade that many places in Canada that would have produced flour or yeast have migrated down south. One of the points of this diet is to keep what we have alive and thriving here in Ontario and perhaps encourage more producers to give it a go here as well.
Thanksgiving is the perfect time to give local eating a try. An entire meal can be prepared using only locally sourced ingredients. Even if most people don't think an entirely local diet is not for them, making small local purchases can go along way to help the bigger picture.
Happy Thanksgiving Canadian readers!
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