Grist makes link between Girl Scouts and Orangutans

This afternoon I read an interesting article on Grist.org titled, "Are Girl Scout cookies killing Orangutans?" 

The article states that Girl Scout cookies are made with palm oil and that palm oil is:

"the No. 1 culprit behind deforestation in Southeast Asia, particularly Indonesia and Malaysia." 

 The Grist article goes on to say that the Girl Scouts can switch to canola oil which is more environmentally friendly and healthier as well.  The next part of the article is what I found most interesting.  Apparently, the Girl Guides of Great Britain use olive and rapeseed oil instead of palm oil and are offering to help the Girl Scouts and Girl Guides Canada switch as well.  This little tidbit comes from the blog, "Please do not tap on the glass" 

I didn't understand why the Girl Scouts don't change oils until I read that they need palm oil to keep the chocolate chips from falling out of the cookies!  Fair enough.  However that excuses flies out the window when your sister organization comes to you and says, "Hey sis, we found another oil that works and guess what? Its more environmentally friendly and healthier then how you are currently making cookies!

So why don't the switch? Cost.  We Americans demand cheaper prices on everything which in this case leads to deforestation which leads to a lost of Orangutan habitat. 

So are the Girls Scouts helping to kill Orangutans with their palm oil filled cookies?  Yes they are.

Who else is helping? Everyone that buys the cookies.

Remember, you can always:

 

Be Greedy - Save the World

Is global warming real? Yes? No? Who cares?

If you said yes, then there are plenty of documentaries out there for you. If you said no or who cares, then you should check out the new documentary called "Carbon Nation."

This film is not trying to change your mind on global warming, all they take about are energy solutions, creating jobs, and saving money. Check out the trailer below.

Chicken Coop Coloring Contest

We need your help!  Firefly and I are spending the weekend building our chicken coop and we're looking for some help in the paint department.  Our hope is that you will download the above coop picture, color it, and then post it with a link in the comments section.  You can also print it out and then scan it.  If it is easier, you can email me at:

tonyr.stillmorningair@gmail.com

I'm think I will also put some out at work and see what designs we get back.


Here's my entry:

How much is your Garden worth?

Curious how much your garden is worth? Find out here


We didn't keep track of how pounds of each produce item we harvested last year but it might be fun to do it this year.  Maybe we too can turn our $26 worth of seeds into $2000 in veggies!


If you are up for it, I think it would be fun for everyone to keep track of how much they havest and post their numbers at the end of the season.

TakeOut WithOut Challenge

I don't know about you but I HATE getting that little styrofoam container as a doggy bag when we go out to eat.  That's why I am really excited about the TakeOutWithOut movement going on right now.  You can check it out via the above link or find more information at the Green Phone Booth (this is where I first learned about it)

Here's the deal in a nutshell:

   When you eat out and you need a doggy bag, grab your own container instead of asking for a styrofoam box or a bag.  This is as simple as bringing your own Tupperware containers or a wrap-n-mat type deal.

I have thought about bringing my own containers for a while now but I never do.  I think what will work best for me is to order less food (portions out are so big anyways) or split a meal with Firefly so that there are no leftovers.

What do you think?  Is this something you might want to try?  What would be the best way for you to say no to doggy bags?

Trader Joes wine

The first row is down and here are the results:

I thought the Gold Rush was a bit to sweet, but Firefly enjoyed it.

I'm not really into describing wines in terms of color, aromas, and tastes so I decided to rank the wines with a simple pass/fail system.  Pass (checkmark) means that we would buy the wine again while fail means that we would not buy it again.  Future wine results posts will include a little more information such as type or wine, year, and location. 

Really good wines might even get two checkmarks...these would be wines that we want to buy more of and save in our wine cellar (bottom part of our linen closet next to the extra blankets)

Addictions...round two

I think it is important to stop and take time every so often to check yourself.  One of the things I check is wither or not I have become or am becoming addicted to something.  Back in march I wrote about my addiction to microwaves which led us to get rid of it all together.  (little side note: I am happy to report that I am CURED from this addiction and have no desire to ever own a microwave again.) 

In this post, I want to share about something I just learned I was addicted to...free stuff.  The worst free stuff addiction I have is with alcohol.  It seems that if someone else is paying, I just want to keep drinking.  The good news is that this is not because I am an alcoholic, but rather because I am cheep :)  I love flying Horizon (They run the flight for Alaskan Airlines) from Reno to Seattle because they always serve free wine and beer from local NW vineyards and brewers.  I think I might have had four glasses on one really empty flight once which is a lot with the high altitude.  I'll even drink bad beer if it's free.  Some friends took us out last new years and because they kept buying the drinks, I had more then I should have or would have normally.

Like I said, I am not an alcoholic but because my behavior changes in ways I don't want it to when the drinks are free (i.e. drinking more then I normally would) I do think this is a problem.  My normal rule of thumb is not to have more then two drinks in an evening out or one glass of wine at home.  My NEW rule is to pay for all drinks that Firefly or I drink, no beer and only one glass of wine if at a friends house. This is in addition to the above two drink rule. 

I think it is a good idea to place restrictions on yourself if you feel your own self-control in a certain area needs strengthening.  You should know your own strengths and weaknesses.  If you can't see where you might be weak or weaking, ask those around you to LOVING point it out to you.  And don't get mad at them when they do :)

The other free addiction I have is with piles of free stuff in front of peoples houses.  I just want to load it all up and take it home! I have been pretty good about this and in the last two years have only brought home three items...a bike, a desk, and a rotary phone...all three of which are still in use today.  I only bring home things that will be used immediately and only need a little love.  

So?  What are you addicted to? 

Kiva hits $100 Million Dollars in Loans

I've talked about Kiva.org here on the blog before but now there is even more good news!  In the 4.5 years Kiva.org has been lending money, they have just reached $100 Million dollars in loans.  I read about this story here, and here.

Kiva's website says that the first loans made in March of 2005 total $3,500.  From $3,500 to $100,000,000 in just over 4 years!  I think this really shows how much good one or two people can do in the world.

We were told about Kiva about 2 years ago and this year started loaning out money.  Right now we have lent $50 and once it is paid back, we will lend it out again along with another $50.  I figure if we keep added and reloaning then in a few years, we might be able to fully support someone.  The way Kiva typically works is to combine our $50 with your $50 and our neighbors $10 and your aunts $200 until the total loan amount is reached.

Click here to check out all the loan requests and see if there is anyone that you want to help.  Our first loan was on behalf of my Dad for his birthday.  Maybe I'll check it out for Chirstmas this year as well.

This is the family that we are supporting right now.

Holiday Challange from Crunchy Chicken

So... I am challenging you all to a challenge that I have been challeged to via the blog Crunchy Chicken

Here's the info:

Well, the goal of the challenge is to have you do one or more of the following:

hand-make your gifts

buy your gifts that are handmade by someone else (like from Etsy or a local craftsperson)

buy it used either at a thrift store, yard sale, Craigslist or Freecycle, etc.

barter for your gifts

Giving you all these choices allows that you can still get products for gifts if you don't know necessarily what to make, but you aren't contributing to new purchases and all the environmental impact associated with that. Now, I know this is a HUGE chunk to bite off, so I'm going to let you be flexible about it. Some of you might try to shoot for 100% Buy Hand and some will choose to buy certain objects they know they can't get away with otherwise.

If you want to take the challenge, cruise on over to Crunchy Chicken and sign up in the comments.  You can also click on the banner I have on the side bar or just leave me a comment and I'll pass along your infomation.

Good luck!

Pescitarian Challenge

What is a Pescitarian?

Well, to start off with Pescitarian is a noun. Kind of a weird looking word, don't ya think? Urban Dictionary defines it as: Person who follows a vegetarian diet with the exception of fish and all other sea foods.

I don't really know why I've been thinking about this so much, but it has really been on my heart and my mind. Slowly over the past few years, I have started to be less and less excited about eating meat.

It started with just a little seed planted a few years back. I heard a news story claiming that if Americans ate beef only twice a week, it would make a huge difference in green house gases. There would be less carbon being admitted by the factories and trucks that are used to turn a cow into a steak. If there was less demand for beef, there would be fewer cows which would mean less methane being farted into the air. Even grass-fed beef is bad because in addition to the above, the cows trample down the grass and then it is not able to remove as much carbon from the air.

I know that converting semi-trucks from oil to electricity would have a much bigger impact, but that is not something that is easy for me to fix. I think we need to focus on small steps that we can each take. (Plus, I reduce the amount of trucks on the roads by not buying a bunch of "stuff" that I don't need. I also try to buy local)

Another thing that I realize as always bother me is that we no longer respect our food. I remember thanking everything as a child. I thanked the sun for shinning and the rain for bringing water. I thanked the flowers for sharing their beauty and I loved that in the movies, Indians would always thank the animal that they killed for food. I have no connection to the meat that I eat and I don't think that is right!I love that we grow some of our own fruits and veggies. Morgan has also done a little research into the farms where we buy some of our other veggies. The food we eat just tastes better to me when I know more about it's life.

I am starting to think that maybe eating animals is not moral any longer. We no longer need to eat cows, chickens, pigs, ect. We live in a world where all of our diet needs can be meet without the eating of animals. For me this really hit home last time I pulled the meat off of a chicken bone, all I could thinking about was that I felt like I was eating my own leg!

Of course I don't feel this same way when I order a chicken burrito, but that is because there is even less of a connection to the food, when someone pulls the meat from the bone. I don't think of it as an animal, its just MEAT! What is Meat? Oh yeah, animals.

For some reason, it does not bother me to eat fish. I think that is because fish is fish. There is still a large connection between me and fish. When I eat it, I know it's fish (it looks and tastes fishy!)

Starting right now, I am a Pescitarian (for a month) I am going to live this lifestyle for one month and see if I feel the same way in 30 days. I want to see if I feel better, both physical and also morally/mentally. I also want to challenge myself and my willpower. How much control does my meat addiction have on me?

Please help keep me accountable for this. The best way is to ask my how I am doing on this. I would love it if someone else wanted to take this challenge along with me. Everything is easier with others.